Tomorrow We Die
by gillyflower34
Summary: Story picks up when Beth and Daryl are in the funeral home together. Instead of Beth getting picked up by the cops from Slabtown, she and Daryl are both taken in by the group that will eventually become the Saviors from the comic book. Rated M for violence, implied sexual violence, sexual content and dark themes.
1. Chapter 1

Day 1

Beth looked up from her dinner of expired snack foods. The soft expression on Daryl's face made her stomach do flip flops. It was unexpected, but not entirely unwelcome. She looked down, breaking the intense gaze between them, trying to think of something to say. Then the cans he had strung up on the porch started clanging and jingling. Daryl leaped up, grabbing the jar of pigs feet. He was sure that little shaggy dog was going to be back, and Beth knew he really wanted to catch it. What they were going to do with a dog once they had one was anyone's guess. They could barely feed themselves.

Beth jumped up, stepping too hard on her sore ankle. She smelled the walkers even before she heard Daryl screaming. He was drawing them away from her. Her first instinct was to try and help him, but she couldn't even walk without limping, and she had left her gun in the front hall. It might as well be a million miles away. So she ran. It wasn't her proudest moment, but she waited by the tall pine tree near the road where he told her to go. The growls and the screams that were coming from the house made her heart beat hard in her chest. She switched her knife to the other hand momentarily, wiping her sweaty palm on the leg of her jeans. Getting a firm grip on the handle of her knife, she tightened the straps of her pack and backed up towards the road so she would be able to see any walkers that were coming before they got too close to her.

It had been a long time since she prayed, since before her daddy died. But she prayed now. Please please please let him be alright. Dear god don't let anything happen to him. Beth was watching the back door of the funeral home, fixated on it. She didn't see the car coming at her until it was too late. The brakes screeched as the front of the car dipped down and the car came to an abrupt stop, tossing the passengers forward against their seat belts and then back against the seats. The back door flung open and a man jumped out. It was hard to tell in only the dim light of the moon, but it looked to Beth like he was wearing some kind of police uniform. The light reflected of the shiny buttons down the front of it.

The man grabbed her by the arm, dragging her towards the car. She scratched his hand with the side of her knife, cringing as it cut into the tender flesh on her arm. The man swore and let go of his grip on her. Then he caught her by the backpack, yanking her backwards and almost pulling her off her feet. She struggled, trying to pull away from him and hang on to her bag. She heard the sound of another car door opening and slamming shut. That's when she made the quick decision that losing her bag was better than letting the man and whoever was with him drag her into the waiting car.

She tried to slip her arm through the strap of the pack, but the force with which the man was pulling on it made the straps dig into her shoulders. She swiped with her knife, slicing through one strap. Then she spun, pulling her arm out loose from the other one and sending the man falling backwards onto the pavement. She hesistated a moment, not wanting to run back to the zombie filled house, but not wanting to run further away from Daryl. The other man that she had heard getting out of the car made her decision for her. He came around the pine tree, cutting between her and the path back to the funeral home. She turned towards the woods and ran. With every hard step, fire flicks of pain shot up from her ankle. But she could hear the man thundering through the woods behind her. So she kept going, she ran until the pain in her sides matched the pain in her ankle, hard branches scraped at her arms as she held them up to try and protect her face as she raced blindly through the undergrowth.

She kept trying to run, but she soon slowed down to a awkward hobble limp. Then she realized she didn't hear the man behind her anymore. She hid behind a tree just in case. But then she heard the distinct sound of car doors slamming and then the squeal of rubbber on the road. Beth leaned against the tree, trying to catch her breath. She picked up her foot and rotated her ankle around expirementally. The pain was blinding. Little white stars danced in front of her eyes and she leaned back against the tree to keep from fainting. There was no way she was walking back the the funeral home tonight. Or anywhere else.

She was trying to figure out what to do when she heard the unmmistakable shuffle and groan of a walker close by. When she reached for her knife, she came up empty handed. She must have dropped it while she was running through the woods. Beth cursed under her breath, saying a few choice words that she had never uttered aloud before in her life. How could she be so stupid? She pressed her back against the tree, wishing she could melt into it and hide inside. Then she looked up and saw a long low hanging branch.

Beth had never been good enough to go competitive, but she had taken gymnastics all through elementary and middle school. Since she had the perfect tiny form for the sport, her instructors had all been encouraging, but in the end she just didn't have the drive to practice and perfect herself like the girls on the travelling team. But that didn't mean she hadn't picked up a few things over the years. Trying not to put weight on her sore foot, Beth inched out from the trunk of the tree and leaped up to grab the branch, praying that it was sturdy enough to hold her weight. Then she started to swing. The hard bark of the tree cut into her palms but she kept swinging. It took going back and forth three times before she got the momentum to swing around and up, leaning forward and resting her hips against the branch. From there she was able to hike one leg over and straddle the branch. She inched backwards until she was against the trunk of the tree again. Only now she was off the ground and out of walker biting range.

It took some adjusting and shifting, but Beth eventually found a spot to sit in the tree that made her feel secure enough to lean back against the trunk and close her eyes. She was tired and hurt and scared. But she reminded herself that Daryl was sure to be able to find her tracks. In the morning he would come and save her. And then eveything was going to be okay again.

Beth didn't know how late she slept, but when she finally woke up, her entire body hurt. Her ankle was throbbing and pulsing inside her boot. Her arm was covered in dried blood from where she had cut herself with her knife. And her body was stiff and sore from sleeping sitting up in the crook of a hard tree. When she looked down, she saw that the smell of her blood had attracted several more unwanted guests. Three walkers were pressed against the trunk of the tree, moaning and reaching up for her. Beth sighed. Her mouth was dry as sandpaper, she was hurt, and she needed to pee. And where the hell was Daryl?

She was not only worried about herself, but she was also getting increasingly worried about Daryl. From the amount of light, the sun had been up for some time. If he had picked up her trail, he would have found her by now. Or he should at least be close. Since the walkers were already all over her, Beth decided that there was no benefit to being quiet.

"Daryl!," she called out, "I'm over here! Daryl!" She heard the twang of a bow and an arrow chunked through the skull of the first walker and chunked into the tree below her. Beth's face lit up in a smile. That was the sweetest noise she had ever heard in her life. The next two walkers fell quickly the same way the first one had. Beth moved about, trying to climb down from the tree as quickly as she could without hurting her ankle worse. She started talking to Daryl, even though she didn't see him yet.

"You took long enough to come and find me I was starting to get wor..." she said, stopping abruptly. There was a man standing in the woods with a crossbow, but the man was not Daryl. The man had long shaggy dark hair that hung around his head in greasy strings. There was a smattering of dark facial hair across his chin that grew up onto his cheeks in patches. He was wearing a black shirt with a black jacket over it. The way he was looking at Beth made her skin crawl. She wasn't sure what to say, so she just stood there looking at him. And he stood there looking at her. His gaze started down at her boots and worked its way up her body, devouring her like she was a piece of meat and he was starving. Beth turned to run and saw that he had other men with him. And they had her surrounded. The greasy man stepped closer to her. He didn't introduce himself or ask her name. He only said one word to her.

"Claimed."


	2. Chapter 2

Day 325

The door swung open with such force that it slammed against the wall behind it, the doorknob buried deep inside the plaster. It was dark inside the room and the bright light flooding in from the doorway forced Beth to hold up her hand to shade her eyes. She was momentarily disoriented. It wasn't until she looked down and saw her naked breasts that she remembered where she was and what she had been doing. Fuck, she thought. She had only meant to close her eyes for a moment, and they had both fallen asleep. And since they were both naked, there was no question as to what they had been doing while everyone else had been out on that run.

She was seized roughly by the arm and dragged to her feet. Daryl was cursing and groping for his pants, trying to find them in the folds of the blankets. Beth tried to use her free arm to cover her breasts as she was pulled from the room and marched past several other members of the group.

"I'm sorry," she started to sputter, "I didn't mean to..." She was roughly shaken by the arm by which she was being dragged. Her arm felt like it was about to rip from the socket and her head shook snapped back and forth like a rag doll.

"Shut your fucking mouth," Neegan told her. She shut it. At this point, anything she said would probably make things worse anyway. They walked out into the courtyard, which was filled with people unloading the items that had been picked up on the run. People stopped what they were doing and stared, their mouths hanging open.

"Get the iron," Neggan called out to the crowd of men he considered to be his most trusted fighters. Beth started to struggle to get away, grabbing at the hand that was holding her and trying to peel Neegan's fingers off her arm. But it was like a mouse trying to fight a cat. And he was the cat. He shoved her towards David.

"Hold the fuck onto her," Neegan barked at him. And David was more than happy to comply, holding Beth's naked body much tighter than he needed to in order to provent her from escaping. He wasn't stupid enough to try anything else with her though, especially with everyone watching. Tara hissed at her from a few feet away.

"What the fuck did you do?," she asked. Beth started to cry, her eyes welling up with water and spilling over, running down her face.

"He caught me with Daryl," Beth admitted.

"Oh fuck," Tara swore under her breath. This was not going to go well for either of them. Neegan had several wives, but everyone knew Beth was his favorite, his pet as he liked to call her. She was the prettiest, the sweetest, the one that knew how to take care of a man without being asked. He was going to flip his fuckin' lid. She watched as Connor got the metal iron nestled into the hot coals they had used to cook breakfast that morning. Beth was looking at it, her eyes getting bigger as she cried harder. Neegan had been over with a few of his men, having a quick, quiet word with them. Then he walked back over to Beth. He leaned in close.

"Don't worry," he told her, "Its not for you, I like you pretty." He caressed the side of her face as she let his words sink into her. It took her a moment before she realized what he meant. If the iron wasn't for her, who was it for? Forgetting her naked body, she started to really fight David, hitting him and kicking him, screaming Daryl's name.

Daryl came running from inside the building with only his pants on, his feet bare. He had his crossbow ready, but the other men where ready for him. Carson hit the bottom of his bow with a baseball bat, sending the arrow sailing off harmlessly over all their heads. Then he and Connor grabbed the man. He fought with them, but they dragged him kicking towards the firepit. Neegan approached him with a big smile on his face.

"Hope you enjoyed fucking my wife," he told the man. Daryl yanked hard at the men holding him, trying to get loose and take a swing at Neegan. But they had him pinned.

"What you did was shameful," Neegan told him. Daryl wasn't stupid, he and everyone else knew what that meant. Some of the other people were starting to yell out their opinions now, calling Beth a whore and cheering for what they knew was coming up next. Some others were looking sickened, but were too frightened to speak up. Neegan backhanded Daryl hard across the face. Then he bent down and got so close Daryl could fell the man's breath on him.

"You either take your punishment like a man," he said, "or Beth will take it for you." Daryl leaned around the larger man, looking for Beth. David had ahold of her. She was naked and crying, yelling for him. Tara knew Neegan was absorbed in talking to Daryl, so she stepped closer to Beth.

"Shut the fuck up Beth, you are going to make this worse," Tara told the girl. Beth didn't stop sobbing, but she at least stopped screaming for Daryl.

The decision was an easy one for Daryl to make. He could live with being burned, but he would die if he had to watch it happen to Beth. "If you are going to do it, fucking get on with it then," he told Neegan. This made the big man happy. He stood up and walked over to Beth. Then he announced to everyone what had happened.

"While I was on a run, risking my life to get supplies to feed this camp," he called out, "my wife was fucking another man!" Lots of people yelled out now, and one woman that was particularly jealous of Beth threw a rock and her. It hit her in the face, slicing the side of her cheek open.

"Enough of that," Neegan boomed at the woman. She looked down at her feet and backed away. "Bring him over!," Neegan called to Carson and Connor. They held onto Daryl, but he walked over on his own. Then they forced him down onto his knees in front of a stack of cement blocks. Connor and Carson knelt down next to him, each holding one of his arms behind his back. Neegan used a stick to fish the hot iron out of the coals, sticking his hand in a cup of water and flicking the water agaist the iron to make sure it was hot enough. The water sizzled off, instantly turning to steam.

Beth had the strong urge to try and reason with the man. Beg him, plead for him not to do this. But she knew Tara was right, anything she said was only going to make things worse. Neegan took a potholder and got a firm grip on the iron. Then he sauntered over to where the men had Daryl on his knees.

He gripped the man by his hair and slammed his head down against the cement blocks. He did not hestitate with the hot iron. He pressed it hard against the side of the other man's face, holding it there until he smelled burnt flesh. Daryl was screaming, and to Beth it sounded like the noise the horses made, that night the walkers came and they burned alive inside the barn. Neegan held the iron up in the air, turning around so everyone could see the bits of burnt hair and flesh that were clinging to it. When he turned it towards Beth, she took one look at it before she felt the world start to spin around her. Then she felt her feet start to go out from under her and everything went black.

 **** Tara is the Tara from the comics, not the Tara from the show, just thought I should explain that so no one got confused. ****


	3. Chapter 3

Day 4

The rain was coming down in a soft drizzle. It made her cold, but at least when she turned her head, some moisture drifted down onto her parched tounge, wetting her mouth. She swallowed, her throat still burning with pain and feeling as dry as an old bone. Then she opened her mouth again, sticking her tounge out. The relief of being able to swallow again soon gave way to shivering. She was getting wetter and the rain felt like it was getting colder. Beth pulled her legs in tighter, and tried to scoot further into the thick strand of bushes she had crawled into after those men had finally left her. She hugged her arms tighter around her legs, trying to keep her teeth from chattering.

Beth closed her eyes. When she heard voices, she slitted them open. There was a giant black boot in front of the bushes she was hiding in. The boot moved, giving her a better view of the clearing. There was a man lying on the ground a few feet away from her. He turned so Beth could see his face. When she realized it was one of the men that attacked her, she shook with fear. A woman with long dark glossy hair was walking around the clearing with a long metal police baton. She stuck it under a shredded piece of Beth's clothing, holding the torn shirt up in the air and examining it. With a quick shake of her baton, she tossed the ripped fabric back to the gorund. Then she came down as quick as lightning. Without warning, she slammed the man on the ground with the baton, hitting him hard in the side of his ribs.

"I fucking told ya," the man cried, "We left 'er here. I dunno where she went after that." The woman hit him again. Beth could hear an audible cracking noise that time, and the man howled in pain.

"I think he's tellin' the truth," the woman said. She stood up and straightened her shirt. Then Beth saw the boot again. The tip of a baseball bat settled down next to it while the man bent to tighten up his shoelaces. It looked like it was wrapped in barbed wire, the little spots where the wire twisted glinted in the beams of light that were coming down through the rain clouds. The boots got smaller as the man moved away from Beth and towards the man on the ground.

"I think you might be fucking right," the man said to the woman that Beth could see. Then he raised the bat above his head and brought it smashing down on the man's head. The man's face caved in. The bat was buried so far into the man's head, Beth saw the big man brace one big black boot against the man's skull before he could yank the bat back out. Chunks of brain and blood splashed everywhere. The woman cursed and jumped back out of the way.

"Damn Neegan," she hollered, "this is a clean shirt." The big man laughed. Beth could hear someone else laughing that she couldn't see. Beth thought about calling out for help. She could barely walk, she was covered in blood that the walkers were sure to smell. If she stayed in this bush, she was going to die. But if she came out, these people might kill her anyway, or do worse to her. The man with the bat was the biggest man she had ever seen. If he wanted to force her like those other men had, she wouldn't be able to stop him and it was going to hurt. A lot. It might kill her. She hugged her knees and slithered further back into the bush. The woman was looking around the clearing again, poking at things with her baton.

"She couldn't have gone far," she said, speaking to someone Beth couldn't see. "Try calling out to her." Beth didn't believe what she was hearing at first. But it sounded like someone calling her name.

"Beth! Beth! Where are you? Beth! Come out, its me Daryl!" Beth thought about it. This might be some kind of trick. But it sounded like it really was Daryl, and whoever it was knew her name. She tried to call out but her throat was sore and swollen. The only noise she coould make was a croaking sound, followed by a high pitched whimper.

"Over here," the big man yelled, "I fucking heard something!" Beth could hear them tearing through the bushes, looking for her.

"Hell, she's way back in there, fucking prickers everywhere," the big man yelled.

"Back off before you end up stomping on her," the woman told him. Then she got down on her belly in the dirt. "Beth?," she asked, "can you hear me?" Beth looked at the woman, nodding her head. "She's alive!," the woman yelled. "I am going to slide under, and I want you to reach out your hands to me," she told Beth, "then we are going to get you out of there, okay? There's some men out here, but none of them will hurt you." Beth nodded again. The woman army crawled under the bush, wincing as the prickers pulled her her hair and scratched at her back.

When she got close enough, Beth took a deep breath and reached her arms out to the woman. The woman got a firm grip on her wrists, making Beth suck in her breath. There were bruises all over them from when those men had held her down. "Sorry," the woman said. "There are lots of prickers, so close your eyes." Then she yelled at the men. "NOW!" Beth saw the woman's body sliding backwards as the men pulled her out by the legs. And Beth was sliding along behind her. Once she was close enough, the woman let go of Beth and the men pulled her out carefully, trying not to hurt her worse. Beth was naked and her entire body was covered in cuts and bruises and bite marks. She heard Daryl suck in his breath. Another man that she had not been able to see from where she lay turned away and put his hand on a tree leaning forward like he might puke.

"All those bites from those men?," the woman asked her, "not from the roamers, right?" Beth pulled her knees to her chest, holding them with her arms. She didn't answer. The woman felt her head. Beth was shaking from the cold. The big man took off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders. He was so big and she was so tiny that the jacket engulfed her, warming her with the body heat that remained in the leather. She pulled the jacket around her, holding it closed. The man that had been leaning against the tree pulled a bottle of water out of his bag and handed it to Daryl. He crouched down next to her and opened the plastic bottle. Beth took it, her hand snaking out from inside the jacket. She slurped the water down greedily, not stopping until the whole bottle was empty.

"Roamers!," the woman yelled, "time to go." Daryl put one arm under Beth's legs and the other around her back, picking her up in a bridal carry.

"They got a doctor back at their camp," he said, "goin' to fix you right up." Beth nodded and leaned her head against his shoulder. They only made it a few steps before she passed out.

When Beth woke up, she was wrapped up in a thick warm sleeping bag. She moved a little, feeling a pinching in her arm. When she opened her eyes, she saw it was an IV needle, clear fluid dripping down from a plastic bag that was suspended above her from the side of a shopping cart. She turned, noticing that there was someone in the sleeping bag with her. A loud shriek issued from her throat, and she was up on her palms, backing away from the person.

"Its me, its just me," Daryl said, "you were cold, the exposure, he said you needed body heat, I will get out now." He backed away from her, holding his hands up like he was surrendering to the police. He held up the edge of the bag with the tips of his fingers. "Just get back in before ya get cold again." Beth took a few deep breaths, trying to calm down. She was dressed in a thick pair of sweat pants and a flannel shirt, both of which were far too large for her. One sleeve on the flannel was rolled up to accommodate the IV. There were socks over her feet and hands, serving as mittens. She took a deep breath. It was just Daryl, and he wasn't going to hurt her. He gestured again for her to get back inside the sleeping bag, which she did. But she didn't lay back down, she sat up, pulling the bag around her like a cape.

A black man that looked to be a little younger than Daryl approached her slowly. Beth watched him with big wide eyes. He crouched down, making sure not to get too close to her. He had a pair of glasses on that were held together with little strips of masking tape.

"I'm Harlan," he told her, "I am a doctor. And I am not going to hurt you. I just need to check your vitals and look at your IV bag, okay?" Beth thought about this. The man seemed nice. But he still scared her.

"Can Daryl stay?," she asked, her voice rough and shaky. The doctor man gave her a warm smile.

"Of course he can stay."


	4. Chapter 4

Day 28

Some of her bruises still lingered in mutlicolored patches on her pale skin, but the spots they covered were no longer sore. Beth had been declared as fit to return to any and all normal activites. She had stayed hidden in the small grocery store for a few weeks now, and in that time she had gotten to know and trust the members of the group that she now considered herself to be a part of. There was the big man, Neegan. He was the leader. It took a little time to get used to what she liked to refer to as his leadership style. He was the polar opposite of Rick in almost every way. He was always making everything out to be one big joke, never taking anything seriously.

Tara was the only other woman. She was a little older than Beth, and a much better fighter. She kept a handgun on her hip, but she was fondest of the retractable police baton she kept on her waist or in her pocket and used to bludgen any roamer that had the misfortune to get too close to her. Anyone that messed with her knew by now to expect a swift and brutal blow from the sturdy metal stick delivered to some sensitive part on their body. It had become a sort of game between them. Every once in a while, one of the men would slide up on her and try to get a quick grope on the woman's ass or breasts before dancing quickly back out of range. At first it scared Beth, but once she saw Tara was laughing about it like it was the funniest thing ever, Beth relaxed. And none of them had made a move to try anything similar out on Beth. In fact they made it a point to stay well away from her and out of her personal space. Even Daryl didn't get close to her unless it was time to go to sleep and even then he slept in his own bag.

The only man that got close to her was Neegan. He liked to sit down and throw one huge bear arm around her. _How you fucking feeling today princess?_ He made her smile. And smiles were hard to come by these days.

The three other members of the group were all black men. Harlan, the doctor, and his younger brother Carson. They didn't look much alike, but they both wore glasses. And the last, but not the least person, was Mike. He was also just a bit older than Beth. Mike was tall and lanky and wore a dingy baseball hat to keep the sun out of his eyes. Beth found she liked him because he reminded her a bit of Glen, not in looks, but in his general attitude and body language. He was a motorcycle mechanic.

They had stayed at the market, not only to let Beth heal up, which she thought was over the top nice of the group. But they also stayed because Mike was fixing up a small fleet of motorcycles for them. Once he was done, the plan was to head east toward the coast and then follow the coast north. Neegan had the idea in his head that the roamers would freeze in the cold. He thought if they got far enough north they might find a place where not as many of them were wandering around. In Beth's opinon, it wasn't the best plan. People froze and died in the cold too. But no one had asked for her opinion in any case. And a bad plan was better than no plan. The plan gave them all hope, and hope was as rare and as precious as a smile in this world.

Beth swung her leg over the bike, feeling unsteady. She had never driven a motorcycle before. They had given her the lightest bike, but it still felt heavy and she felt awkward on it. She hoped she would get used to it after a while. The bikes took a lot less gas, and it was much easier to maneuver around the sections of road that were blocked by abandoned cars. Beth had hoped that she might be able to just ride behind Daryl on his bike, but they could carry more supplies and extra gas this way.

Sliding her arm through her demin jacket, she pulled it closed, buttoning one of the buttons in the middle to keep it from flying open while she rode. Then she slid on a pair of cheap sunglasses that had come from a display inside the store. Daryl took another look at her bike, checking the saddlebags again to make sure the straps were tight. He reminded her for what seemed like the hundreth time where the brake was and where the gas was and what to do if they saw a herd. She smiled up at him.

"I know all that Daryl," she said, "you told me at least a hundred times." That made him smile, his bangs falling forward into his face. He swiped at them, trying to tuck them behind his ear.

"Just be careful," he reminded her, "stay close to me if anything happens." Beth nodded. Then on an impulse she lurched forward, wrapping her arms around his waist and leaning her head against his shoulder. He stiffened up at first, but then she felt his arms wrap around her. His body was always so warm, like he carried more body heat than a regular person. Then he let go, backing away quickly and patting her on the head like she was his little sister, or a dog. "Be careful," he said again.

"I'm always careful," she reminded him. They all were. You could be as careful and cautious as you liked, but sometimes shit just happened. Beth turned to grip the handlebars on her new bike. She swung her leg over, getting a feel for it. Mike had taken her arround the block once, and then got behind her and made her drive around the block. But this was her first time actually going anywhere.

Beth flicked the kickstand up. Then she came down on the kickstart. The bike made a noise, but it did not spring to life, like everyone else's bikes were doing. Beth expected people to laugh at her, but no one did.

"Think badass and try again," Tara suggested over the loud hum of six motorcycles running at once. Beth hiked her leg up again. This time she came down hard on it, not worried that she might damage the bike. It roared to life. Tara held her thumb up. Her hair was hanging down her back in a long tight french braid. Beth's was done up the same. The night before they had taken turns braiding each other's hair so it wouldn't blow all over when they rode the bikes today.

Neegan pulled out first, with Carson beside him. Daryl took the rear with Tara. Beth, Harlan and Mike were in the middle. Beth noticed everyone was being careful to give her plenty of room, in case she swerved or lost control of the bike. But so far it was going well. They made it out onto the main highway and started heading east. There were a few spots were the highway was a bit of a mess, but only one place where they had to get off the bikes and walk them.

They rode for the morning and into the afternoon before Neegan decided they should stop for a break and something to eat. Beth climbed off her bike, feeling funny in her legs. It was like she was suddenly bolegged, even though she felt like she was walking normally.

"Should start looking for a place to sleep tonight," Carson mentioned. Neegan nodded.

"Was thinkin' the next traffic snarl we hit, get out and sleep in the fucking cars," Neegan told him. Carson nodded. Sounded like a good a plan as any. And they could keep the bikes close that way. Mike cracked open a can of peaches, spooning one out with the lid and then passing the can around so everyone else could do the same.

"Going to have to hit someplace up for food soon," Mike said, "only got a few cans of that grocery store shit left."

"Yeah, this fruit cocktail is givin' me the shits," Carson announced. There were a few groans at his disgusting comment.

"Everythin' gives you the shits," his brother told him. Carson rabbit punched him and they started goofing off, smacking and wrestling around with each other. Beth saw Daryl watching them, a soft sad smile on his face. She didn't have to ask what he was thinking, she knew he missed his brother. She missed Maggie and Shawn. He didn't need to say it.

From the wooded area behind them, a loud scream suddenly came rising up out of the trees. Beth could tell by the volume that it was somewhere close by. Daryl grabbbed his bow, hesistating. He was watching Neegan to see what the big man wanted to do about the noise. Neegan was on his feet before everyone else, grabbing hold of his bat and charging into the woods. There was no discussion of whether or not they should help, like there would have been with Rick. Beth wasn't sure what to do. But everyone was running into the woods, and she didn't want to be left there alone. So she got her knife out and followed them.

There was a group that had made a camp in the woods. It was a small clearing they had surrounded with barbed wire. Beth had seen lots of similar camps and stayed in one with Daryl, after the prison fell. A large group of the dead had stumbled upon them, and the people in the camp were trying to fight them off. But it wasn't going very well for them. Neegan and Carson charged in, swing their bats. Daryl and Mike stayed back, covering them with their bows. Harlan and Tara circled around and started taking the walkers out on the other side. Beth stayed behind Daryl, watching. Within a few minutes, all the roamers were dead. Neegan walked through, Tara now next to him. If any of the roamers looked like they might have some fight left in them, he stomped down hard on their heads with his big black boots, cussing while he did it.

Harlan went in after them, asking if anyone needed medical attention. One girl had cut her arm pretty badly on the barbed wire, so Harlan sat her down to take a look. He cleaned the wound and wrapped it up in some gauze. Beth stayed outside the wired part of the camp, watching. A man with a muscular body dressed up in army fatigues approached Tara. He looked her up and down. Then he got a little closer.

"Thanks for the help," he said. Beth did not like his tone. And she could tell by the way Daryl suddenly lifted his crossbow back up that he had not liked it either. "It there's anything I can do to repay you, just let me know." With that the man stuck his hand out and grabbed at Tara's ass. Tara smiled at the man. Then she reached into her side cargo pocket. As soon as Beth heard the metalic snap of her baton being whipped out to its full length, she knew it was on. Tara pulled her arm back, then she whipped the man across the face, sending one of his teeth flying out of his mouth. Then she hit him again and again. He fell to the ground and she just kept hitting him, blood splashing up into her face. When she stepped back, Neegan brought his foot up and stomped down hard on the man's head, crushing his skull into mush.

Another man in camo ran at Neegan, weilding a knife. But before he could get close he dropped dead with an arrow through his head. An arrow from Daryl's bow. That's when Beth held her gun up, pointing it at the people. There were a few more men standing around, dressed similarly to the ones that were dead. Neegan held his arms up, one of them holding the wicked looking bat he loved.

"Any of you other motherfuckers want a peice of this, you shit eating goat fuckers?" The other men from the camp all stayed back, looking scared. And Beth didn't blame them. Neegan was a head taller than the tallest man there and probably outweighed the largest man by at least 50 pounds. The girl Harlan had been helping was clinging to his arm. Neegan walked over to where this camp had their supplies piled up. He started poking through the stuff. Then he took a large empty box and started throwing stuff into it that he clearly planned on taking.

"What the hell do you think you are doing," one man said, stepping forward like he was thinking about doing something.

"We just saved your lives," Neegan informed the man, "so you fucking owe us."

"You can't take everything," a more timid man said from near the fence, "we'll starve." Neegan stood up, taking a look at the second man that had spoken up. He did have a point. But on the other hand, these fuckers owed them.

"Not going to take everything," Neegan said, "going to take half. And if anyone has a problem with that I will bash your fucking brains in." He pointed at the more aggressive man with his bat. The man backed up quickly, fully aware that the big man meant what he said. Beth watched as the girl that Harlan was helping stood up.

Jasmine had seen these people make quick work of the dead that had been mobbing her camp. And she had seen the big man stomp in the skull of that asshole Peter that had been trying to force himself on her for months. The big man had women with his group. Women that did not look like they were being mistreated or harassed. The man that cleaned her arm was gentle and kind. This might be her only chance to get out of here.

"Got something to say there sweetheart?," Neegan asked the girl. She was pretty, with tan skin and dark eyes. If he had to guess, he would say she was a little older than Beth. Her clothes looked baggy on her, and he could see she looked scared. Scared but determined.

"Yes," she said, her voice shaking, "will you take me with you?"

"You aren't goin' no where bitch," one of the man called out to her. Harlan stood up, putting his arm around the girl. He leveled his gun at the man, but Tara was quicker. She gave him one hard whack to the back of the skull with her baton, dropping the man like the sack of shit that he was. She didn't kill him. Instead she spoke to the girl.

"Get your stuff." The girl nodded and scrambled to grab her small bag, shoving things inside of it. Harlan stayed close to her. He had his gun up, making sure no one was going to try and stop her from leaving.

"Anyone else?," Neegan asked. And he wasn't kidding. Any more hot chicks wanted to jump ship, they were more than welcome to come along.


	5. Chapter 5

Day 326

Beth woke up with the taste of vomit in her mouth. She could still smell the skin in Daryl's face burning and the sick burnt popcorn smell of his hair crinkling up as it hit the iron. Rolling off the small cot, she looked for a good place to empty her stomach. There was a small plastic bucket in one corner and she headed for it, dropping to her knees and heaving up whatever was left inside her.

She sat down hard, knocking her tailbone on the wall behind her. The waves of pain shot through her, and little white dots danced in front of her face. Gathering her knees up, she rested her head on them, trying to get some kind of control over herself. She needed to figure out where she was and what was going on. Last thing she remembered she had been naked. And now she was dressed, in a pair of sweatpants and a button down shirt that was much to large for her. She used one of the long sleeves to wipe off the beads of sweat that had formed across her forehead. Then she pushed her hair back from her face and looked around.

The room she was in was not familiar to her. It held a small cot with a bare mattress and one blanket that was folded up near the foot of the bed. Otherwise, there was nothing else inside except for the bucket in the corner. The room was lit with one dim bulb, and the floor was concrete. Beth knew there were rooms inside the factory where people were sometimes held against their will. She had never seen them, but she guessed that was where she must be.

If she was locked up, she guessed Daryl might be too. And it killed her to think about him, hurt and suffering, tucked away somewhere with no one to take care of him. This was all her fault. He had told her what they were doing was a bad idea. Beth wiped at her eyes and pushed against the wall, getting into a standing postition. She leaned there with her hand on the wall, waiting for the wave of dizzyness to pass. Then she went for the door. The only way she was going to figure out if she was locked in here was to try and get out.

The doorknob didn't turn. She was locked in. Fucking assholes, locking her in here like this. Now she was getting angry. Beth looked around the room for something to pick the lock with. It was the kind that people kept on their bathroom doors. All you had to do was stick something inside the little hole and the knob would turn. But there was nothing inside the room that would work. She felt through her hair, hoping for a stray bobby pin and coming up empty handed. She looked under the mattress and shook the cot to see if any of the screws were loose. Once she realized there was no way she was going to be able to escape, she stalked over to the door and started pounding on it.

"Hey! Let me out of here! Hey! You can't keep me locked up in here! Let me out!" She pounded on the door with her fists. Then she stopped to listen. She didn't even know if anyone out there could hear her. Beth sighed. If Neegan wanted her dead, he would have killed her already. He would come down and talk to her when he was ready to talk to her. Hopefully that would be before she had to go to the bathroom in that plastic bucket. Beth walked over and flopped down on the bed, feeling dejected and helpless. The switch for the light was outside in the hall, so she couldn't even turn it off and try to sleep.

Then she heard the doorknob jiggle. Beth sat up and swung her legs over the side of the cot. The door swung open and for a moment the person was just a silhouette in the brighter light that was streaming in from the hall. When it moved closer, she could see that it was David. He held out a plastic cup of water, which she took gratefully and slurped down in a few sips. She expected him to turn around and leave, but instead he closed the door behind him.

"Can you tell me anything about what's going on?," Beth asked. David had never been her favorite person. Most of the women avoided him, since they considered him to be a bit of a sleaze. But at this point, she was in no position to be picky about where she got her information. And he had never dared to bother her before. She belonged to Neegan.

"I broke the rules by coming in her to give you that water," he told her, ignoring her question. Then he got closer, sitting down on the cot next to her. Beth moved away from him, pulling the top of her shirt closed with her hand. He leaned back and put one hand on the cot behind her. Water was always limited, but most people managed to stay reasonably clean. But Beth could see he had a ring of dirt around the back of his neck and there was more dirt under his fingernails.

"You walk around here, thinking you are so much better than everyone," he told her. "Acting like you are too good for the likes of me." Beth scooted further away, not liking where this was going. She did think she was too good for him. All the woman thought that. He was a total pig. Even know, he was roaming over her body with his beady little pig eyes.

"David," she said, trying to usher up more authority than she felt like she had, "I would like to speak to Neegan, could you please go get him for me."

"I want to speak to Neegan," he said, mocking her in a high falsetto. "Neegan doesn't want to see you. I'm right here, why don't you talk to me?" He looked her over, seeing if she had anything to say about that. He put his arm on her shoulder and she smacked it away. "You act like you are so perfect, but now everyone knows the truth. You are nothing but a little whore." He paused, licking his lips. "And I am going to fuck you like a whore."

With that Beth flew off the bed towards the door. She got it halfway open before he caught her by the hair and slammed it shut. He threw her towards the cot. She bounced across it, slamming her elbow into the wall. Then she started screaming for help. David jumped on top of her, closing his hands around her throat and cutting off her air.

"Shut your whore mouth or I will choke the fucking life out of you," he warned her. Beth brought the palm of her hand up, fast and hard, like Tara taught her. She drove it into his nose, feeling a satisfying crack. Blood poured out of his face, splattering onto her. The grip on her throat loosened and she screamed again. He was still on top of her and she shoved and kicked at him, trying to get away. His arm came up and he slapped her hard across the face. Her head rocked sideways and her cheek exploded in pain. Then he brought his hand back and hit her again.

"Fucking little bitch," he swore. Beth could already feel her face swelling up, the pain was pulsing and her eye felt like it was going to explode. David wiped at his broken nose and then ripped her shirt open, the buttons popping off and pinging onto the floor. He grabbed at her breast with one bloody hand, squeezing it hard enough to make her cry out in pain. Then he started ripping at her pants, trying to pull them off.

He was so much bigger than her, it was hard to even breathe with him on top of her like this. Suddenly the air whooshed into her lungs. David was dangling in the air by the back of his jacket. The blood was running out of his neck like a red river of death. And there was a knife sticking out of him. He was tossed to the floor and then she saw Neegan was standing over him. He yanked the knife out and stabbed the man a few times in the head. Beth was pushing back with her heels, grabbing at her shirt to pull it together and cover herself. Neegan tossed the knife on the floor and put his hands up.

"Not going to hurt you Bethy," he said. She was breathing hard and there was blood all over her. "Any of that blood yours honey?" Beth thought about that. She shook her head.

"Don't th... th... think so, he only hit me."

"He fucking hit you?," Neegan asked her. She nodded. He stomped down hard on the David's skull, crushing it until the man was unrecognizable. Just a puddle of brain mush and bits of bone.

"Are you going to kill me?," she asked. He came towards her, moving slowly. She backed up into the corner of the cot, pressing herself into the wall. He sat down on the far end of the cot, the metal creaking and groaning under his weight.

"Do you really think I am going to kill you?," he asked her. She looked at him, then she shook her head. If he wanted to kill her, she would already be dead. But that didn't mean he wasn't going to hurt her.

"I put you down here until I got a chance to talk to you," he explained, "I didn't want you running off upset and getting youself hurt or killed." She still looked afraid, but she wasn't pressing herself into the corner of the wall anymore. He gestured to her, motioning for her to come closer. "Come here, its alright." Beth took one more look at the bloody mess on the floor and scrambled across the bed into Neegan's lap. She started to sob into his chest, clinging to his shirt. He patted her back.

"I am sorry for what happened earlier. But I can't have my lieutenants thinking they can fuck my wives. You understand that honey." Beth was scared to ask about what happened to Daryl. Partly because she wasn't sure if she wanted to know, and partly because she thought asking about him might make Neegan mad.

"Is Daryl dead?," she finally sputtered out.

"No, he is going to be fine," Neegan said, "one of the doctors is taking care of him. I'll take you to see him tomorrow." Beth didn't say anything else. Her mind was in turmoil. She hated Neegan for what he did to Daryl, but he had also just saved her from David. Not to mention all the other times he had saved her life. And she had been caught cheating on him when she knew that was against the rules. Maybe this was really more her fault than his.

"Now do you want to stay down here," he asked, "or would you rather come back to my room with me?" The puddle of blood creeping across the floor made it an easy decision.

"I would rather go with you."


	6. Chapter 6

Day 29

Beth was riding behind Daryl on his bike now. And she much preferred it to trying to drive the other one herself. People had shifted around and most were riding two to a bike to make room for the people they had picked up from that other camp. Two women and one man had come with them. Tara had gotten all bent out of shape about being expected to ride behind one of the guys, so now Harlan was on her bike, riding behind her. They had picked up two women and one man, so the group now had ten members.

Beth was leaning her head against Daryl's back. He was really too tall for her to do anything else. She couldn't see around him and she had got sick of trying to crane her neck to get a look after the first mile. The insides of her thighs were pressed against him and the vibration of the bike combined with having him so close was making her think wicked thoughts. Thoughts about things she might like to do later when they made camp that she would never in a million years have the nerve to say out loud.

Something had been building between them when they had been alone together after the prison fell. She was sure of it. But lately he had been acting cold, more like he was before. Beth thought maybe he was just trying to give her space. After what happened to her, she understood that he might be hesitant to try and make a move on her. She could be patient, but she didn't want to wait forever.

Beth was lost deep in her thoughts, Daryl had to elbow her several times before he got her attention. Then he pulled up in front of the small back of bikes, giving the signal for everyone to stop. Beth climbed off the bike, looking around with wide eyes. She knew exactly where she was. The sign they made for Sophia was long gone, but this was the spot on the highway where they had all found each other again after the farm got overrun.

"Think I got an idea of a place we can stay at tonight," Daryl called to Neegan.

"Lead on brother," Neegan yelled back. Daryl whistled to Beth, gesturing for her to get back on the bike. She dashed over and hopped back on. Then she looked up, watching for all the familiar trees she knew could only be found on the way to her house.

The barns were burnt out, and the fields were overgrown, but the house still looked solid. Daryl headed out to see if he could get the generator going. He took the new guy with him. Davis was black like Carson and Harlan. But his hair was white. His face looked young for someone with such white hair and it made his age hard to determine. Unless it was to agree with something Neegan said, the man didn't speak up much. So far, Daryl found his sucking up to be a little annoying. But Daryl decided to give the man a chance. He was with a new group, and he had seen the leader of that group stomp one of his old group member's head in. Maybe he was just nervous.

They lucked out and found a huge tank of gas sitting behind the generator. Daryl poured it in and they started it up. Even from where Daryl was standing, they could hear people cheering from inside the house. This meant hot showers and cold drinks. Daryl had to admit, even he was looking forward to a shower.

"How did you know this place was here?," Jasmine asked Beth. The girls were in the big bathroom, wrapped in towels, trying to comb the knots and snarls out of each other's hair.

"I used to live here," Beth said, "back before the turn."

"Really?," Lauren asked, wincing as Tara combed hard at a bad patch of snarls on her head. Her hair dark brown and it fell to her shoulders. It had clearly not been brushed in a very long time, the loose hairs were coming out in clumps and Tara was tossing the little hairballs into a trash can.

"Yeh, it seems like such a long time ago. Like it happened to someone else," Beth said. She saw the other girls nod and she knew they understood. Tara tried not to even think about her life before the turn. It just made her miss everyone she lost that much more.

The men had taken significantly less time in the bathroom. Daryl was out on the porch smoking his last cigarette when Neegan came out.. He tried to sit down on the railing next to Daryl but it made a protesting squeaking noise, and then there was the sound of wood starting to crack. The big man got back up and settled himself down on the porch swing. It also creaked in protest, but held his weight.

"Wanted to thank you," Neegan told him.

"For what?," Daryl asked.

"For yesterday, that fucker with the knife. I woulda kicked his ass, but he mighta cut me up a little first. You shot him before he could."

"Don't need to thank me, was no more than what you did when you found me."

"That was just killing roamers," Neegan reminded him, "killin' a man is a different sort of animal." Daryl nodded. Killing the living was different. But if he had the choice, he would shoot that man dead, just the same.

"Just glad to have you around," Neegan told him. He got up, patted the other man on the back and headed back inside the house. Daryl could hear his booming voice through the windows. _If you women don't come out of that fucking bathroom soon, I am coming in there and drag your naked asses out!_ There was a loud pounding, which Daryl guessed was Neegan banging on the bathroom door. Or maybe trying to kick it in. Anything was possible.

Then Daryl heard a loud bang, followed by some assorted laughter and some high pitched giggly shrieks. It was one thing for Neegan to be teasing Beth and Tara, but he ought to know better than to be messing with those new girls, Daryl thought. Who knows what kind of things happened to them out there. But from the amount of laughter coming from inside the house, they didn't sound too upset. Then he heard Tara yelling. _Grab for my fucking towel again and you are getting the stick._ Daryl couldn't help but crack a smile.

He thought about how quick Neegan had been to help those strangers when he heard that scream. There had been no hesitation at all. He had helped Daryl the same way. And helped him find Beth. No questions asked. But when that man had messed with Tara, Neegan had not hesitated to kill him.

Back at the prison, Daryl had been able to help out. He was a contributing member of the group. It had made him feel good inside. Like he was worth something. People that would have spit on him back before the turn were finally treating him like an equal. But he had never felt completely at home there. He had always felt like he was pretending to be the person they all thought he was. Now he didn't have to pretend. For the first time in his life, he felt like he could relax and just be himself. These were his people.


	7. Chapter 7

Day 41

Clutching her side, Beth leaned forward. She braced her other hand against the fence post to keep from falling over. She couldn't remember the last time she had laughed so hard. A stray chicken had the misfortune of wandering across the front lawn of the farm house. The guys went rushing out, trying to catch it. The problem was, the closest most of them had ever been to a chicken was KFC. They did manage to surround it rather quickly. Then Mike darted in, snaking out one long skinny arm, and actually caught hold of the ruffled and rather sorry looking bird. When it started flapping and pecking at him he screamed like a twelve year old girl and let go of it, jumping back and shaking his hands like he had just touched the most fearsome creature in the world.

Now Neegan was chasing the poor bird, trying to catch the chicken by stomping on it. He was screaming out colorful obscenities each time he brought his foot down. Beth wanted to yell for him to stop before he crushed the thing, but she was laughing too hard. Daryl was up on the porch, leaning against the side of the house and watching. He wasn't laughing as hard as Beth, but the corners of his mouth were turned up in a tight little smirk. Beth knew he could catch the chicken easily, but she guessed he was enjoying the show as much as she was. Neegan stomped down again, missing the chicken by almost a foot. "Fucking sneaky cunt bastard!" The bird darted away from him, bobbing it's head forward and back, running as fast as it's little chicken feet would carry it.

Beth finally got control over her laughter. She had a tank top on under the plaid button down she was wearing, so she unfastened the buttons and pulled the shirt off. Then she moved slowly and quietly towards the frightened bird. She came down swiftly and without hestitation, bagging the chicken up in her shirt and lifting it up into her arms. Then she unwrapped it carefully, holding it close to her body. The men just stared at her. Until Neegan started clapping. "Take a fucking look at that shit!" Then the rest of them started clapping and cheering along with him. She could feel the chicken's little heart beating hard against her hand, and she found herself feeling a pang of sympathy for the poor animal. She imagined making it this far, through all odds, just to be caught now and tossed into somebody's chicken soup. Then she thought about how good the chicken soup was going to taste and she didn't feel so bad anymore.

"There's lard and flour inside," she mentioned, "we can make chicken and dumplings."

She glanced toward Daryl, trying to see his expression. The dish was something she had cooked for everyone at the prison, and she knew he liked it because he always tried to get a second helping. But he was not paying attention to her. He was looking down the driveway, past where they were standing. And he was loading his crossbow. Neegan reacted to Daryl's body language before he saw what Daryl was reacting to. From the time they had spent together, he knew Daryl didn't gear up for no reason.

"You girls get the fuck inside," Neegan yelled. Beth knew he only meant her, Lauren and Jasmine. For all practical purposes, Tara was considered one of the men. Beth took off for the door, Jasmine close behind her. Since Lauren was on the porch, she was already inside. The men grabbed their weapons and stood out in the front yard.

Three men were coming down the old gravel driveway. They had weapons. Everyone did these days. But other than that, they didn't seem overly threatening. Beth trapped the chicken under a laundry basket and got her knife just in case. As they got closer, Beth got a better look at the men out the front window. Two of them were white with shaved heads, and the third was younger then the other two and black. He also had a shaved head. The two white guys looked about Daryl's age. Despite the fact that all the men from her group were in the front yard were pointing weapons at them, the other men didn't put their weapons up.

"What the fuck you want?," Neegan asked the men in his usual direct manner.

"Nothing really," one of the white men said, "we saw the lights last night from a mile or so away. Thought there might be people here." The explanation didn't make a lot of sense. The only kind of people that went looking for other people were the kind that went looking for trouble. And that would be a stupid thing to admit.

"We ain't ate in two days," the younger black man added, "we got desperate." Now Neegan nodded. The black man gestured up towards the house. From where he was, he could see the girls clustered together, peeking out the window. He raised his hand up, giving them a friendly wave. "We don't mean you or your women any trouble." Beth shoved the other girls back and closed the curtain.

"Got anything you'd be willin' to trade for some dinner?," Neegan asked the men. He would feed them anyway. It was safer than turning away desperate people that might come back and attack them later. But if he could get something out of it, he would.

"Yeah, yeah," the white man that had spoken first said. He pulled his pack off his back and started digging through it. He pulled out two full bottles of liquor. One was whiskey and the other was some kind of fruity flavored vodka. "Went into a bar in a little town near here, looking for food, found this hid down under the counter."

"Good the fuck enough for me!," Neegan declared.

Beth sipped at her drink, adding ice to it had not made it taste any better, but she liked how relaxed it was making her feel. Until she had her first drink, she had not understood why her father had such a problem with the stuff. Now she knew. Life would be so much easier to deal with if she felt like this all the time. Neegan hollered over everyone to get their attention. He held up his glass.

"Eat, drink and be merry, for tommorrow we die!," he called out. Mike whistled and a few of the men pounded their feet. Then Connor and Harlan held up their glasses.

"Tomorrow we die," they chanted.

"Yeah," Tara yelled, "not tonight motherfuckers!"

A lot of cheers and laughter rang out. The men from the driveway were still eating peaches out of a large bucket, laughing and chatting with the group as they drank. It was early to tell, but so far they seemed to be fitting in well. And not a one of them had dared to even look at Beth or any of the other girls, so she guessed that maybe Neegan had given them some kind of warning or possibly even threatened them.

The younger one was Gary. He was about Mike's age and the two of them seemed to make friends almost instantly. The two older men were Seth and John. Beth had thought it was strange that they all had shaved heads, but Seth had explained that the camp they were staying at before it got overrun had become infested with lice and fleas after someone took in a stray dog. The men insisted that the head shavings had taken care of the problem, but Beth made sure to stay a few feet away from them just in case. And she offered to wash all their clothes for them the next day.

Tipping her cup up, Beth drained the last of the liquid out of it and let it slide down her throat. Then she held her cup out for a refill. She could feel herself smiling more, and guessed that meant she might be at least halfway to drunk. Her eyes scanned the room, looking for Daryl. She felt like she was always looking for him. It just made her feel better if she knew where he was. Not seeing him anywhere, Beth guessed he might be out on the porch smoking. She tried to stand up, sat back down hard in her chair, and then used her hand on the back of the chair to push herself into a standing position.

"Where you going, drunk ass?," Neegan called after her.

"The porch," she called back.

"No further than that," he warned her. He really didn't like her going outside, but he knew Daryl was out there. He wouldn't let her wander off.

Just as she had suspected, Daryl was perched on the porch steps. He was sipping out of a cup of whiskey, and there was a little trail of smoke drifting up and curling around the railing next to him. Beth closed the door softly behind her and stood with her back against it, watching him. He tossed his head to get his hair out of his eyes in the way that always reminded her of a horse. Then he picked up his drink. She watched the muscles in his shoulders move as he brought the cup up to his lips and took a sip. Beth found herself drifting closer to him without really meaning to. She licked her lips.

When she got close enough, she reached down with one small hand and let her brush against the stubble on his cheek, and then gently lowered herself into his lap. At least how it went in her mind. In reality, she wacked him in the side of his head with her knuckles and plopped down so hard in his lap that he spilled his drink on both of them and burnt himself with his cigarette.

"What the hell Beth?," he swore. First he thought she fell on him, until she wrapped her arms around his neck and tried to kiss him. He swore he had only been outside a few minutes. How Beth had managed to get sloppy slut drunk in that amount of time was really beyond him. Daryl tried to shove her off, which was quite the task, considering he had lit cigarette in one hand and she was sitting on the other hand.

"Come on," he told her, leaning his head back to try and keep from gettting covered in her sloppy kisses. "Stop playing around."

"I'm not playing," she insisted. To prove her point, she reached down and grabbed at his crotch. That was more than enough. He jumped up, spilling her out of his lap onto the stairs. There had been a few times in the past that he would have given just about anything to take Beth into his lap and have her touch him like that. But he didn't want it to happen like this, with her so drunk she had no idea what was going on.

"You need to take your ass to bed," Daryl informed her. From the way she was looking up at him, she had crossed the line from happy lovey dovey drunk to angry drunk in the last ten seconds.

"You are not my damn daddy Daryl," she yelled at him, "so fuck off." Her feelings were hurt and she was trying hard not to start crying in front of him. She knew that she had made an absolute fool out of herself. All that stuff she had been thinking about her and Daryl had been nothing but one big joke. He never liked her as anything more than a friend. That was obvious to her now.

"You better sit out here and get some air," he told her, "before you really do something you'll regret." Then he stalked off into the house.

"Fuck you!," she shouted at the closed door. Then she felt the tears spill out. She wiped at her face with the back of her hands. Other people were walking around inside the house near the door. Beth didn't want any of them to see her like this. The humilitation was already more than she could take. Before any of them could come out and talk to her, she got up and ran.

Beth was drunk, and it was dark out, but she had lived on this property all her life. She didn't conciously run in a certain direction, but she found her feet were taking her out towards the horse barn. Or what was left of the barn after the fire and the roamers got to it. She caught her foot on a rock and fell hard on her elbows. Pushing herself up, she brushed off the dirt and kept going. The barn was where she had always gone when things were troubling her. Caring for the horses soothed her mind and comforted her. But all the horses were long dead. And what was left of them wasn't something she wanted to see. Just bones and bits of rotten clinging flesh.

One walls of the barn was still standing, charred black and grey from the smoke and fire that had killed her horses. Beth leaned against the outside of it, then slid down the side and sat on the ground, her arms hugging her knees. She found herself crying hard, sobbing against her knees. The incident with Daryl had set her off. But it was more than that. What happened to her after the funeral home got overrun. Her father being killed in front of her. Not knowing where her sister was. It all built up inside her and came pouring out. She felt so alone. More alone than she had felt in a long time. Maybe since her mom died that day in front of the barn.

Beth heard footsteps approaching her from around the other side of the barn. She guessed it was Daryl, so she didn't look up. The last thing she wanted was for him to see her crying like this. And her ugly splotchy face, with her nose red and the ugly scars she had now looking even uglier. She didn't realize it was a walker until it already had a grip on her.

Beth scrambled to her feet, trying to shake the thing loose. But it's fingers were all tangled up in the fabric of her shirt. When she tried to back away, she just drug it with her by the arm. She fumbled at her waist, reaching for her knife. But her knife wasn't on her. She left it on the kitchen counter inside the house. Using her arm against the walkers forehead, she tried to keep it's mouth away from her while she figured out what to do.

"HELP!," she screamed, even though she knew there was no one to hear her. They were all inside the house drinking. Then the roamer was yanked backwards with such force that it ripped the sleeve off her shirt. Neegan hurled it to the ground and stomped on its head, smashing it like a melon. Before she could even say anything, another one was coming at her. It's mouth was open and it was hissing and reaching for her. Neegan grabbed for that one, but its clothes were in tatters and when he caught hold of it, the skin just ripped right off it's back and it kept coming. He reached out, catching hold of Beth's arm and pulling her hard, around the walker and into his arms, sheilding her with his body. He hollered out when the thing bit down on his shoulder. Beth snatched his knife out of his belt and slammed it into the walker's brain. It flopped on the ground with a sickening thud.

"Oh my god, did it get you, did it bite you!?," Beth asked in a panic. She pulled Neegan out to where the front of the barn used to be and pushed him down on a turned over horse trough. He unzipped his jacket and she pulled it off his shoulder, then ripped his shirt from the collar down in her haste to check his skin for a mark. It was hard to see anything with only the moonlight to see by. There was a dark mark, but when she ran her hand over it, she could tell the skin had not been broken. It was just going to bruise up.

"It's okay," she said, "it's okay, it didn't break the skin." She wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging his head against her chest. Both of them were breathing hard. She could feel the warmth of his breath through the material of her shirt. And his hand was resting on her lower back, just above the curve of her ass. His other hand was resting on his knee, but the knuckles were touching the inside of her thigh. She couldn't pinpoint the moment that it happened, but what had been a platonic hug was feeling more like a romantic embrace.

He moved his hands, one up and the other one down, taking her by the hips and setting her down so she was straddling one of his legs. Then one hand moved up her back and caught hold of her ponytail. He pulled at it, not hard enough to hurt her, just enough to tilt her head back so she was looking up at him. Then he head moved down until his lips were pressed against hers. It wasn't a forceful passoinate kiss, and it wasn't exactly a peck. The kiss fell somewhere between those in nature. She was left wanting more. And it would cross her mind later that while it wasn't her first kiss, it was the first time she had been kissed by a man.

 **** I try not to add too many authors notes, because I want the story to read like its a real book, but I do want to thank everyone that has taken the time to leave a review. ****


	8. Chapter 8

Day 352

Beth heard the noise coming from out in the courtyard. It sounded like fifty angry people yelling at the same time.

"What the hell is going on now?," Jasmine asked. She brushed the gold nail polish across the last toe on that foot and then switched her leg position to paint the other foot. "I'm not sure if I can take any more excitement."

"Maybe there's a fight," Lauren said. She got up on her tiptoes, trying to peek out the little window. If Tara was beating the hell out of some asshole, and Lauren missed that shit, she was going to be disappointed. On the other hand, if someone else was getting their face half burnt off, she would be more than happy to stay up here and not see anything. Finally her curiosity won out. "Who wants to go with me?"

"I will," Beth said. She grabbed Lauren's hand and they clung tightly to each other before darting unlocking the door and darting out of the room. The girls headed for the courtyard, staying quiet. When they got outside, they stayed close to the brick wall of the building. The crowd was gathered around, making it hard to get a look at what was going on. Finally, Neegan started yelling at everyone to go back to whatever they were doing.

"Shows over! Get the fuck out of here," he hollered. The crowd dispersed quickly, leaving the girls with a better view of what was happening.

"I told you we missed a fight," Lauren said. Beth wasn't so sure. Mike was sitting on a milk carton, holding a rag to his face. He was dabbing at his lip, which was split and swollen. And one of his eyes was starting to swell. Mike was not hot headed. Everyone liked him. And he was part of Neegan's inner circle. Beth did not think anyone here would have been stupid enough to start a fight with him. Plus it was collection day. And she didn't see a truck load of supplies being unloaded. Something must have gone wrong.

Daryl was standing near him. The side of his face was still raw and painful looking. The worst of it was the eye on that side, it had a strange bulging droopy look to it now. It made Beth sick to look at it. She felt the pain and pull in her chest, the desire to go to him and wrap her arms around him. Kiss every part of him that was causing him pain. But she knew she couldn't. That would just make things worse for both of them. He must have felt her eyes on him, because he looked up, glancing in her direction. Their eyes met for just a moment, and then he looked back down at Mike.

Beth felt Lauren squeeze her hand tighter. She rubbed the back of Beth's hand with her thumb, offering the girl the only comfort she could. "His face looks better," Lauren whispered.

"Better than what?," Beth asked. Lauren could hear the hurt and anger in her voice. She had better watch that shit when you-know-who was around.

Daryl usually took care of the collection runs. Mike had to take over while he was healing up. Now three people were dead. Daryl had been worried that Neegan might get angry with Mike, maybe even start beating him. But luckily he was directing his anger at the men that had jumped Mike and his crew. Neegan had been becoming more and more unhinged lately, and burning Daryl's face had only been the tip of the iceberg.

"Now tell me again exactly what the fuck happened," Neegan said.

Mike took the truck. Three of the other guys went with him. He was nervous. From the beginning, he felt that doing the collection runs without Daryl was a bad idea. Greg was afraid of Daryl. He was not afraid of Mike. But the first few weeks, the runs had gone alright. Mike had shown up, the stuff was ready. The people from Hilltop loaded it up onto the truck and he left.

But today there had been strangers at the gate when he showed up. He wasn't sure who they were, but they were not pussy ass farmers from Hilltop. They had women with them. Fighting women, like Tara. At first, everything seemed cool. But then the collection load was light. Mike knew he was going to get in deep shit if he came back to the compound with a light load, so he grabbed Greg and threatened him. Greg was a pussy. If you even breathed wrong in his direction, he gave you whatever you wanted. But those other people stepped in and got involved. A black woman shot Chris and Peter. Then some cop looking motherfucker killed Nate and punched Mike in his face.

"He said to tell you your deal with Hilltop is off," Mike told Neegan, "he said they are going to be picking up our collection from now on."

"We will see about that shit," Neegan said. He turned and put his hand on Daryl's back, like they were still the best of friends and Neegan had not burned half his face on and nearly killed him a few weeks before.

"Can I count on you to take care of this shit?," Neegan asked him. Daryl wanted to do nothing more than to punch him right in his smiling face. But instead he glancd quickly over at Beth. He didn't want to make any more problems for her.

"I got it," Daryl said.

Beth watched Neegan throw his arm around Daryl. Whatever he was sending him to do she knew it was going to be dangerous. Probably a mission that there was a good chance he might not come back from. She felt the tears welling up inside her, threatening to spill out and run down her cheeks. Lauren tightened her grip on Beth's hand and pulled her back inside the building.

"You have got to get it together," she hissed at Beth.

"I know," Beth said, taking a deep breath and wiping at her eyes. She couldn't even cry back in her room. The other girls might tell Neegan on her later. Crystal liked to do that. Especially to Beth, who she thought was a spoiled little brat.

"He is going to want lunch soon," Lauren reminded Beth, "lets just go make it and take it back to the room before he has to ask." Beth nodded. At least that would give her something else to focus on.

Beth and Lauren went down to the kitchen area and found something to make Neegan for lunch. The men in charge of the ktichen knew to give them whatever they wanted and not to ask any questions. Beth used to take extra and make Daryl lunch. She would leave it in his room for him. But she was too scared to do that now. If anyone told Neegan that she was in or even near Daryl's room they would both be in for a world of hurt. So she just helped Lauren get something ready for Neegan. Then they took the food back to their room and waited for him to show up.

It wasn't long before the door swung open and his imposing frame appeared in the doorway. He had a girl with him. Beth had seen her around camp a few times, but she was new. Beth couldn't remember her name, but she knew the girl had come in with a few guys only about a week before. One of them had some kind of medical training, so Neegan let them stay. Beth had noticed her because she was pretty. She was blonde with big dark eyes and long legs.

"This is Amber," Neegan announced. He didn't need to say the rest. Amber was going to be staying with them. Another wife. The other girls were expected to make her feel welcome. Crystal got up from one of the beds. She was wearing nothing but a thin tank top and a skimpy pair of panties. Even when she left the room to walk around camp, she often didn't wear much more than that. She liked the attention.

She approached the new girl, smiling at her. Putting her hands on Amber's waist, Crystal leaned in and kissed her. Amber kissed her back, but Beth could tell by her body language that she wasn't really interested in the other girl. Like all of them, she was only here because she had no other choice.


	9. Chapter 9

Day 65

At the farmhouse, having electricity and well water that they could drink without boiling first had been a real luxury. Staying there felt comfortable, almost like normal life again. But like all good places they found to stay, eventually the food ran out and they had to move on. The men with the shaved heads had not been the only group to see the lights and investigate. Now the group had over twenty five members. They were stronger now. But there were also more of them to feed. And Beth had noticed that since their numbers had swelled, a rather informal leadership system had developed. Neegan was in charge. But Daryl and Carson were close in line behind him. None of the other men would question any orders they were given by any of the three of them.

Beth picked up another folded blanket and handed it up to Jasmine. Jasmine tossed it to Lauren, who was inside the van that was going to serve as the girl's home while they were on the road. The van, along with several other vehicles, was anchored down to the back of a flatbed that was being pulled by a semi. John had been a long haul semi driver back before the turn, and the truck had been his idea. Diesel was easier to come by these days, and with the large angled plow they added to the front of the truck, they would be able to push cars and large groups of walkers out of the way.

Daryl was pulling a wagon full of large bottles of water. He and Harlan had taken a few men and filled up every usable container they could find with clean water from the well. Math wasn't really his strong suit, but he guessed they had at least two months worth of water. Food was the issue. They were almost out. Some of the men had gone out and cleaned the rest of the peaches off the trees, and Daryl had gotten lucky and landed a deer a few days before. But the group was bigger now. That food was only going to last them a few more days.

Daryl looked over to where Beth was tossing the last few pillows up to one of the other girls. The sun was shining off her long blonde ponytail and she was smiling, making the little scar on the side of her face crinkle up. Beth glanced in his direction, like she could feel someone watching her. When her eyes met his, she quickly looked away and went back to what she was doing.

Beth had not been nasty or rude to him. But since that night she had tried to kiss him, she had been cold. She didn't seek out his company the way she used to. Hell, she barely even spoke to him anymore unless she had to. And she had taken to sleeping with the other girls, instead of next to him. _Story of my life, everytime I try to do the right thing, it blows up in my fucking face. Should have just taken her drunk ass upstairs and fucked her like she wanted. Then maybe she would still be talking to me._ Daryl wished he could figure out how to fix the situation, but he was about as good at relationships as he was at doing math.

Beth saw Daryl looking at her. He had a strange expression on his face. She couldn't tell what he was thinking but it made her feel sad anyway. He had made it clear how he felt about her that night on the porch. So she had been trying to give him the space she thought he wanted. She supposed if she was him, having some little girl follow you around all the time would probably be annoying. And she didn't want to bother him or be a nuisance.

But she kept catching him looking at her. She would get a little tickle up the back of her neck and when she glanced around, he would be standing there staring at her. She felt like she was getting mixed signals from him and it was starting to confuse and upset her.

Beth gripped the side of the flatbed, trying to haul herself up. Jasmine caught her by one hand and tried to help but she lost her grip and sent Beth flopping down onto the grass on her ass. Daryl started to head in her direction, to help her. But Neegan got there before him. Beth felt herself lifted into the air like she weighed as much as the pillows she had been handing up a few moments before. Neegan held her up over his head, making her squeal.

"Put me down you lunatatic," Beth screamed. She could hear everyone laughing.

"Be careful," Tara called out, "you break it you bought it." Beth felt herself lowered onto the flatbed. She scrambled to get away before she was swung up into the air again. She bumped into Tara's legs and Tara fell backward, banging into the metal panels that were attached to the side of the van. "Assholes!," she called out. Beth wasn't sure if she was talking to her or Neegan or both of them, but she laughed anyway.

"Sorry Tara," Beth exclaimed.

"Would be easier to believe that if you weren't laughing," Tara said, adjusting the little silver ring in her nose. Tara hopped down, landing soundlessly on the ground. She walked over to her bike, swinging one leg over the side and gripping the hadle bars. "Are we going to get going or do all you fuckers need another hour to stand around with your dicks in your hands?," she asked.

"If my dick was in your mouth, we wouldn't have that problem," Neegan informed her. She flipped him off and he gave her an evil grin in return. Then he shouted, "Everybody mount up, its time to hit the fucking road!" The small group of people that were scouting ahead on the bikes got on them. Neegan was one of them. Before he went to climb on his bike, he motioned for Beth to come out of the van.

"You girls keep your asses in that van. Any trouble you close the doors and stay behind them." Beth nodded. He had told her all this before, so it was just a reminder. The metal panels they added to the van would stop most bullets from coming through. He turned to walk towards his bike. Beth watched him go, and suddenly found herself calling out to him.

"Wait," she squeaked. He turned back and Beth knelt down on the edge of the flatbed so she could wrap her arms around him in a quick hug. "Be careful," she whispered. The coarse stubble on his cheek rubbed against her soft skin for just a moment. And then he was gone, striding towards his bike and not looking back. Beth felt eyes on her again. By the time she turned, he had his back to her, swinging one leg over his bike. But she had the funny feeling that Daryl had been looking at her. Again.

Riding in the van was actually nice. Anything beat the hell out of trying to drive a motorcycle, but the guys had taken all the back seats out and laid a mattress down. And the space was piled with pillows and blankets. Beth and Jasmine opened the windows so a nice breeze was coming in. And the battery still had some juice, so they could even use the radio to listen to the CDs they had. Crystal was the newest girl, she had shown up with the last group, about a week ago. She was taking a nap. Lauren and Jasmine were braiding each other's hair. And Beth was sitting in the driver's seat, watching the trees go by and wishing that she had thought to bring a book.

She saw the billow of dark grey smoke coming up over the trees. It had to have come from a large fire that was mostly out now. Then she felt the truck slow to a stop. She craned her head out the window. Daryl and the other guys on the bikes were going through a large pileup of cars. Beth leaned back in the seat, wondering if she should get out and help, or if she would just be in the way. Most of the men riding on the flatbed were already getting out of their vehicles and jumping down to head that way. She decided to stay put. But the fire drew her attention again. She found herself thinking about her prison family, and finding it odd that she had not given them a thought in quite some time. Some of them must have made it out of the prison alive. They might still be in the area. Maybe they had something to do with the fire she saw.

Daryl poked through the backseat of a empty car, having already disposed of its undead inhabitant. He found some bottles of flavored water, and under the seat he got lucky with a large box of protien bars. Another score in the glove box was half a bottle of pain pills. He swallowed one of them down dry and put the rest of the bottle in with the power bars before setting the whole mess on the roof of the car. Nothing was in the trunk but a tied up naked walker that looked like she might not have been so dead when she got put in there. He stabbed her in the head and tossed her body on the pavement. Then he lifted up the trunk lining. There was a toolbox full of tools. He wasn't sure if they needed them, but he put them on the roof next to the rest of the stuff so Mike could have a look and see if there was anything he wanted.

A few of the cars that were jammed up, making the gas tanks harder to get to, actually still had gas in them. They filled up the bikes and were still left with about five gallons, so that was a great score. Daryl looked up from a gas can that he was screwing the lid onto. Neegan was standing on the hoods of one of the abandoned cars, staring at the smoke rising up above the trees. Daryl set the can down and walked over to climb up next to him.

"Want to check it out?," Daryl asked. He held up his hand to shade his eyes from the sun and tried to figure out how far away the smoke was coming from. The big man nodded at him.

"Where there's smoke, there's fire, and that means people. People that might have some fucking food," Neegan announced.

"What if they don't want to give it to us?," Daryl asked. Neegan held his bat up, tapping it lightly against his palm. He gave Daryl a big wicked grin.

"Then I might have to persuade the fuckers. Make them see what's in their best interest." He watched Daryl out of the corner of his eye to gauge his reaction. That fucker was hard to get a read on. "You got my back like the last time?," Neegan asked him. Daryl chewed at the skin on his thumb like he was thinking about the question.

"I got your back," he said firmly.

Beth was fidgeting so much that she started driving all the other girls crazy. Finally she got out and started pacing up and down the length of the flatbed. Harlan offered her a hand up to sit on top of the semi cab with him. He was waiting for his brother Carson to get back. And that was always a hard thing to wait on. The majority of the group had gone to investigate the fire. That way if they did find some food, they would be able to carry more of it back. Just Harlan, Gary and the girls were left waiting on the flatbed of the semi. Harlan put his arm around Beth. She leaned into him, comfortable since she knew well enough by now that he was not interested in her sexually. Harlan didn't advertise it, but he preferred the private company of other men. Not little blonde girls like her.

"He is coming back," Harlan said. Beth just sighed and wrapped her arm around his waist. She wasn't sure which he Harlan meant, or whether he meant to comfort her or convince himself. But Beth agreed with him anyway.

"He is."

The men were only gone about three hours total. But to Beth it felt like three hundred. They did bring back some supplies. But by the looks on their faces, Beth could tell something bad had happened. She didn't ask what. She wasn't sure if she even wanted to know. She just helped with the supplies and kept quiet.

The sun was low in the sky. Dried venison and peaches were handed out with cups of water. Beth noticed a lot of the men that had gone on the run did not take anything to eat. Instead they just went to bed. She climed inside the van and decided to do the same.

Neegan motioned for Daryl to climb into the cab of the semi truck with him. Carson was already inside with his brother, telling the man quietly about the horrible things they had seen at the compound. Harlan was rubbing his back. Mike and Tara came in behind him and sat in one seat together. For once, Tara didn't seem to mind being touched, and she leaned against the younger man's chest. letting him wrap his arms around her.

Neegan pulled a bottle of liquor out from under the seat and held it up. It was still half full. He took the first swig himself and then passed it around. It was really a pity they didn't have more. Daryl guessed all the men on that run needed a drink just about as bad as he did right now. He tipped the bottle up, letting the burning liquid slide down, lighting a fire inside him. It burned all the way down to his throat and settled in his belly. Then he handed the bottle to Tara.

"That was the most fucked up shit I ever saw," Tara said, wiping her mouth and taking another swig before handing the bottle to Mike.

"All those welcome signs," Carson said, reaching for the bottle, "they were luring people in and eating them."

"Don't talk about that shit no more man," Daryl told him, "was bad enough seeing butchered up dead people, don't need to fucking talk 'bout it." He felt Tara's hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently before she let go. All Daryl could think about was what if he had followed the signs. What if he had taken Beth there. Maybe that was where the rest of his group ended up. He had not seen any of them. But maybe they had already been eaten by the freaks that had been running that place. It really made him sick. He was more grateful than ever that Neegan had found him and Beth when he did. If he hadn't, Daryl was sure they would both be dead by now.

"First thing we do tomorrow is put some fucking miles between us and this fucking place," Neegan said. There were nods all around. He grabbed the bottle from Carson and took one more swig before handing it back. Then he opened the truck door.

"Where the fuck you going?," Tara asked. He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

"To find some more pleasant company."

Beth was lying on the mattress in the back of the van. It was a little tight for four girls, but she found she really didn't mind cuddling up with them. It reminded her of when she was little and she used to creep into Maggie's room at night when she got scared. She was curled up behind Lauren, one arm around the other girl and the other arm under her head. The girls were whispering quietly to each other, talking about what they thought might have happened on the run to upset everyone so much when the back hatch of the van flung open without warning, scaring all of them. They felt safe enough, but in a group with so many men, the fear of rape was always a constant. It was just something that you learned to live with. Something else to make room for.

"What the fuck is going on in here?," Neegan hollered at the girls. Beth flopped back down on the bed and tossed her knife back under the seat where she had been keeping it. To her surprise, the big man started climbing inside the van, stomping on their legs and getting dirt on the blankets. Lauren and Jasmine were laughing.

"Don't mind me girls," he said, pulling the hatch door shut behind him, "you won't even fucking notice I'm here." Now Beth was laughing. There was barely room for the four of them to sleep, let alone a man the size of a giant grizzly bear. Crystal let out a muffled shriek as he flopped down on top of her.

"Get off before you smash her," Beth said between giggles. She pulled herself up and headed for the front seat, pulling Lauren along with her. Neegan could sleep where he liked, but she wasn't getting smashed against the side of the van all night. And he smelled like whiskey. If he was going to come crawling in their van drunk, he could at least bring some alcohol.

Beth leaned the seat back, trying to get comfortable. There was a lot of laughing, some rather loud piggish grunts, and a fair amount of rustling noises coming from the back of the van. First Beth thought they were just goofing around. But when she turned around, she saw Crystal was on top of Neegan, kissing him hard on the mouth. Then she was moving down his body, pulling his jacket and shirt open and kissing down his chest. Then Jasmine was kissing him on the mouth. When they started pulling their clothes off, Beth stopped watching. She felt a hard stab of jealousy and anger. And she felt like a stupid fool. Again. Nothing had happened since that night by the barn when Neegan kissed her. But she had thought that meant her liked her. Now she knew she was just another dead girl to him. The same as she was to Daryl.


	10. Chapter 10

Day 79

She could smell it before they got close enough to see it. The salt from the water was in the air. Beth closed her eyes and thought about her mother. There was nothing her mother loved more than going to the beach. The real beach, not the lakeshore. At least once a year, Beth's mother made her father take a week off work and from the farm and take them on vacation to the ocean.

Beth wanted to get the first look at the water. She wished she had taken Neegan up on his offer to let her ride on his bike with him today. But Beth knew Crystal really wanted to ride with him, so she had said she was tired and wanted to lay down in the van. As far as Beth was concerned, Crystal had earned the bike ride for the rides she had been giving the man every night since he started sleeping in the van with them. After a while, Beth couldn't take listening to the shit every night and had started sleeping in one of the other vans with Tara, Mike and Daryl. At least if Tara and Mike wanted to fuck, they went up in the front seat and got it over with quick.

Beth hopped out of the van, clinging to the side of it and moving down the flatbed. She reached for the next van, only letting go of the side of hers when she had a good grip on the other one. Then she crab walked sideways past that one, earning a few odd glances from the men inside it.

"Better be careful there honey," one man called out. He looked like he was thinking about getting up and maybe helping her or trying to make her go back to the girl's van, so Beth moved quickly by. They passed by a low hanging tree branch and Beth felt the leaves whip by her face, just the very tips touching her. She kept moving, gripping the back of the semi cab and edging out onto the little rail on the side of it. Then she grabbed the bar on top of the open window and swung herself inside. She landed hard on Harlan's lap and he let out a little shriek.

"Where the hell did you come from?," he asked her. He moved over to make room for her in the seat next to him.

"The van," Beth said.

"Girl," John hollered at her from the driver's seat, "have you gone crazy?" Beth laughed.

"I want to see the ocean," she told him, "it has to be close, I can smell it." John smiled at her. He had been thinking the same thing.

"At the top of this hill," he said, "should be able to get a look." Beth leaned forward as the incline of the road increased. When they hit the top of the hill she saw that he was right. There was the ocean, blue and sparkling and spread out all the way to the horizon. She saw one of the bikes was falling back. Neegan yelled up to John.

"Keep going on to the beach, we got something to check out and we will meet you there." John gave him the thumb up. Beth saw the group of motorcycles along with the small pickup truck they had with them now take off down a street to the left. She always got a little nervous when the group separated, but they always found each other. Once they found a spot to set up camp, they would light a little signal fire so the rest of the group could find them.

Daryl followed Carson's lead. They had seen signs for a grocery store that they planned to check out. If that was a bust they were going to be in trouble. The food was gone. They had been handing out half portions for a week. And no one had eaten at all the day before. If they didn't find food soon, the group was going to splinter. And Neegan didn't want that.

The store was easy to spot. There was a small herd of roamers outside the front window, trying to push in through the glass. That also meant more problems. It meant there were people inside. Daryl parked his bike and got off, taking his gun out of the side pockets and sticking it into his belt. He loaded his crossbow and held it up.

"You and Carson take Mike and sneak around back," Neegan said, "I got the front door."

"What can I do?," Crystal asked.

"Go sit in the fucking truck," Tara told her. That little bitch was getting on her last nerve. Since Crystal had been sucking Neegan's dick off for him every night, her head had been getting bigger. She was not beyond thinking that she could boss people around at camp and get away with it. When it looked like Crystal was not going to listen to her, Neegan smacked her lightly across the face. It wasn't hard enough to leave a mark, but it was hard enough to shut her up.

"Get in the goddamn truck," he swore at the girl. Stupid little girl, he thought, thats the last time she is ever riding with me. Tara rolled her eyes and shook her head. She was going to deal with that little whore later. Right now it was time for business.

When Daryl was sure they were ready, he took off for the back of the store with the other guys. Mike pulled out a crowbar and popped the backdoor of the store open. Two frightened girls were looking at them from behind some boxes. One had a gun pointed at them. Her hands were shaking.

"Put it down," Carson told the girl, "we are just looking for food." He put his hands up, walking towards the girls, drawing their attention. Daryl and Mike slid around behind the stack of boxes. Daryl could not help but notice that all the boxes were full. Full of food. Enough food to keep the whole group fed for a month at least. There was a lot of garbage out back in the alley behind them. Before they had even come in, Daryl guessed whoever was holed up in this place had been here a while.

"Put the gun down before someone gets hurt," Daryl told the girl. Mike moved closer, letting her feel the tip of his gun against her temple. Daryl leaned in and put his hand on the gun, taking it from her. The other girl had backed up, she was holding a little knife out in front of her. Her eyes were wide with fear. Daryl patted at the other girls legs, making sure she didn't have anything else on her. Her whole body was shaking. The way she was acting, he had seen it before. After Beth was attacked.

"Told ya," Daryl said to her, "we just want food. Ain't gonna hurt ya." She looked at him like she wanted to believe him but she wasn't sure.

"Hand over the knife," Carson told the other girl. He moved a little closer. She swiped at him with it. "I don't want to have to hurt you." The girl swiped at him again. Her knife didn't even look very sharp and she was holding it all wrong. But Daryl had to give her points for being brave enough to try and fight.

"I know what you want," the girl spit at them, "stay away from me." She was watching Carson, since he was the one that was talking to her. But Mike reached in from the other side and caught her by the wrist, taking the knife out of her hand easily. "Keep your hands off me," she hissed. Then she kicked Mike in the shin and tried to run.

"Sonofabitch," Mike swore. Carson grabbed the girl, holding her by the arm while she struggled to get away. He was afraid she might start screaming and give them away, so he put his hand over her mouth.

"Calm the fuck down," Carson told the girl.

"Please don't hurt her," the other girl said. She had tears rolling down her face now. Daryl opened the door that separated the stock room from the rest of the store. He could see the top of Neegan's head over the aisles, but not much else.

"How many of your people are out there?," Daryl asked the girl.

"T.. t.. ten," she said. Daryl checked the gun he had taken from her. No wonder she hadn't taken a shot at them. The gun was empty. "They out of bullets too?" She nodded. "You're coming with me just in case," Daryl said. Then he seized the girl by the arm and walked out into the store with her in front of him. Carson came behind him, still holding onto the other girl. He let go of her mouth, now he wanted her to start yelling. And she did.

"Daddy!"

Part of the group that was facing off with Neegan started heading their way. They backed up quick when they saw Daryl and Carson had the girls. When they got down the aisles, and came out into the open part of the store, Neegan saw what they were doing. He laughed. Then he punched the man standing closest to him hard across the face, dropping him to the floor instantly.

"There's enough food in that stock room to feed a fuckin' army man," Carson told him. Neegan lifted up his hands and clapped. Then he walked over and grabbed the girl Carson was holding. She shrieked.

"Listen up fuckers," he told the small group of men that had empty guns pointed at him. "You either give me what I want, or I will take it anyway, and take her with me." He pointed to the man he guessed was in charge. "Take your men and get in that cooler over there like I fucking told you the first time." He walked back over to the man that he had punched, dragging the girl with him. He kicked the man hard in the side, flipping him onto his back. "NOW!," he told them. If the fuckers had any bullets, they would have shot him by now. And there were not enough of them to put up any kind of physical fight.

The last of the fight went out of the men and they headed into the warm heat of the cooler. dragging their fallen friend along with them. Neegan sat the girls down in front of the cooler door and told Tara to watch them. Then Mike pulled the truck up out front and they all started loading it up with boxes of food. Canned food, boxed pasta, bags flour and big tubs of shortening, they loaded up as much as they could fit and even strapped milk crates down to the back of the bikes so they could take more. The girls sat quietly against the cooler door, watching.

"When they get done robbing us," one of them asked Tara, "are they going to rape us?" Tara felt sad for them. She guessed they had both been attacked before. But the one that spoke to her still had some spunk left in her.

"No," she told them.

"Why not?," the girl asked. That big man had beat the shit out of Terry. And these people clearly had no problem with stealing. Tara shrugged.

"Raping is against the rules." It was the most simple explanation she could think of. They had a code. Stealing was alright, because the truth was, this food didn't really belong to these people anyway. They just found it first. And violence was allowed because there was no way to live in this world without it. Raping was unnecessary. Tara noticed the taller girl that had been quiet up until now was looking at her with a lot of intenstiy in her eyes.

"It's not against the rules here," she said. The other girl looked at her with her mouth open. She leaned in and whispered to her friend, _who raped you?_ The girl did not answer her. She just looked up at Tara. They locked eyes for a moment, sizing each other up. Then Tara offered the girl her hand. She helped her up onto her feet. The girl brushed her pants off and stood there, unsure of what to do next.

"Tara," Tara said, sticking her leather clad hand out the girl. The girl hesistated and then put her hand in Tara's and shook it.

"Ginny," she said. Tara smiled at her. The girl was a little shorter than her with average looks. She had chipped red polish on her nails and when she smiled back, Tara saw she had a chipped front tooth to go with them.

"Well Ginny," Tara said, "why don't you pick up one of those boxes there and take it out to the truck."

"I can do better than that," the girl offered. She looked towards the cooler, hesistating. Then she added, "We have another truck hid in the next alley over with a full tank of gas."

"You little bitch," the girl sitting against the cooler cursed, "you fucking traitor." She held up her middle finger. Tara got her baton out, flicking it so that it extended all the way out with a snap. She pointed it at the girl on the floor.

"Shut your fucking mouth."

Daryl dragged another full box of cans to the stack by the front door. He had been watching the little exchange between the women. He let go of the box and walked over to them, tapping Ginny softly on the shoulder. She jumped.

"Want to show me where the truck is?," he asked. She looked back and forth between him and Tara. Tara nodded and gestured for her to go with the man. Daryl could see that she was still frightened of him, so he whipped out the empty gun he had taken from the girl earlier. He pulled a bag of extra bullets out of his pocket and loaded it up. Then he snapped it closed and held it out for the girl to take. "They work better when they're loaded," he told her. She was looking at him like he was trying to trick her. Then she snaked her hand over and took the gun, holding it tightly with both hands.

"Just don't shoot me," Daryl warned her.


	11. Chapter 11

Day 354

The day wasn't as hot as the day before had been. But the rain had come down in a soft sprinkle while they slept and now the mosquitoes were out in full force. He couldn't rub mud on the burnt part of his face because he was scared it might get infected. So he was stuck waving the fucking things away, which was working about as well as a broke dick. The fuckers just kept biting him and now along with being painful and tight, the side of his face was itching him like crazy too.

Daryl and Mike had already snuck inside the wall without the people from Hilltop knowing. They had seen that the collection ready for whoever was coming to get it. Which meant they were coming soon. And when they showed up, they were going to find out what happened to people who fucked with Neegan's group.

The walkie talkie in Daryl's pocket beeped. He fumbled with it, yanking it out and hitting the talk button.

"Car incoming. Over," Mike said from the other end.

"Just one? Over."

"One car, two people inside. Over."

"We got them. Over and Out."

Daryl signaled for his men to get ready. It wasn't long before he heard the car coming himself. It pulled up to the gate and a big man with red hair got out. Daryl knew everyone from Hilltop and this guy was from somewhere else. But he waited to be sure these people were from the same group that jumped Mike. Daryl watched Greg open the gate.

"We have everything ready for you," Greg said. Once that was out of his mouth, Daryl knew these were the people he was waiting for. He lifted his bow, taking careful aim at the red haired man. The gate was blocking the man while he talked to Greg. But after a few more words, the man walked back towards the driver's side of his car. Daryl pulled the trigger on his bow. It sailed out of the brush silently, plunging into the man's head. He dropped to the ground instantly.

Carson came in from the other side, opening the passenger door and punching the other occupant of the car in the face. Then he dragged the man out of the car onto the ground and started kicking him. Daryl reloaded his bow and ran over.

"Don't fuckin' kill him," Daryl reminded Carson. Carson nodded and gave the guy on the ground one more good kick to the gut. Then he dragged him away from the car and tied his hands behind his back. Greg was standing in the gateway with his mouth open wide with shock. Daryl didn't bother to speak to him, he just walked over and hit him hard in the face with his crossbow. The man fell to the ground on his knees, holding his face and crying like the bitch he was. Daryl kicked him in the gut. Daryl felt the anger swelling up inside him. What had happened with Beth, his face, having to smile in Neegan's face after he almost killed him. He had been holding it all in. He leaned over Greg and seized the man by the front of his shirt

'Give me a reason you motherfucker," Daryl screamed into his face, "give me one fucking reason and I will beat you to death right fucking now." He tossed Greg back on the ground, gripping his crossbow so hard it left marks on his hands and trying to remember that killing Greg would not help him right now. Mike approached him slowly, putting his hand on Daryl's shoulder. Daryl shook him off.

"Go get the truck," Daryl told him. Mike nodded and took off in the direction of the truck. Greg was coughing and sputtering, trying to pull himself up into a standing position. Daryl looked over the collection, making sure everything was there. The people that were waiting to help load it backed up, not wanting to get too close to him. One woman was staring at the side of his face like it was going to make her sick.

Grabbing the man he had tied up on the ground, Carson dragged him over and forced him into the trunk of his own car. Then he got in and backed it up so Mike could pull in with the truck. Daryl and Carson waited until the truck was loaded and Mike was on his way back to the compound. Then they drove a few miles away from Hilltop and pulled the car over. They had one more man with them, a younger guy that was new to the group. He was looking just a little too excited over what was going on.

"What are we going to do with that guy in the trunk?," Mark asked.

"He is going to tell us where his camp is," Daryl told him.

"What if he doesn't?"

"He will." To prove Daryl's point, Carson got a pair of bolt cutters out of his bag and snapped them viciously in the air. Suddenly the new kid wasn't smiling so big anymore.

Carson took the keys and popped the trunk. Daryl took a look at the man inside. He was overweight and looked out of shape, things you didn't see much these days. And his hair looked like he cut the front off himself and just let the back go long. His face was swelling up from where Carson had punched him, but he was awake. Daryl and Carson each grabbed him under one shoulder and they dragged him from the car, dropping him onto the gravel on the side of the road.

"Where are you from?," Daryl asked. To his surprise, the man answered without hesitation.

"The Alexandria Safe Zone." The man caughed, spitting out a little of his own blood. "What are you going to do with me?," he asked. Daryl and Carson exchanged looks.

"If you tell us where it is, we will take you back there. I need to have a talk with your leader," Daryl said. _And beat his fucking brains in for killing my men._

"I will show you the way," the man said.

They drove for most of the afternoon. At first Daryl thought maybe the man was buying time, leading them on a wild goose chase. But sure enough, the tall steel walls of Alexandria were soon looming up in front of them. They parked a few feet back from the gate. Then Daryl got out, dragging the man with him. He tossed him on the ground and pounded on the gate. Carson and Mark were behind the doors of the car, covering him with their rifles.

There was some commotion from inside the gate. Then the large metal door was slid open from inside. Daryl was surprised to see a middle aged woman standing on the other side.

"What is going on here," she asked.

"Got your man here," Daryl told her, "and if you want him back, I want to see the fuckers that killed my friends two days ago." The woman stared at him like she had no idea what he was talking about. Daryl pointed his crossbow at her. She backed up, fear contorting the features of her face. The man on the ground rolled around and pulled himself up onto his knees. Daryl was standing directly behind him. He was watching the people at the gate that had guns on him, not the man he had tied up. Daryl felt the man move, but he thought he was just falling over again. He didn't realize what the man was doing until he felt terrible waves of pain radiating up from his crotch. That fucker bit him. Bit him in the crotch like some kind of fucking pervert.

Daryl screamed out in pain, squeezing down on the trigger of his crossbow involuntarily and sending an arrow flying. It flew so close to Deanna's head that when she checked later, she would see she was missing a chunk of her hair. Then the gunfire started. It ripped across the trunk of the car. And it was coming from the wrong direction. It was coming from behind the town gates, not from inside, like they had been expecting. Carson and Mark dove back inside the car. From the floor of the car, Carson reached up and popped the car into reverse. Then he held the bottom of the wheel and slammed on the gas. A bullet came through the celing of the car and whizzed so close to him that he could feel it. Mark cried out in pain as one grazed him arm, spraying blood across the front the the glove compartment.

Daryl felt the ground under his knees. Little white dots were dancing in front of his eyes and he felt the world swirling around him. The last thing he felt was the hard punch across the face that knocked him out.

Carson got the car far enough back. Then he climbed up into the seat and slammed it into drive, flooring the gas. Getting as many miles between him and that town as he could. Mark was holding his arm, squeezing his eyes shut from the pain. Little trickles of blood were seeping out between his fingers.

"We have to go back for Daryl," Mark said, "we can't just leave him there."

"We will," Carson said, "but first we need some backup."

Daryl woke up to find he was lying on the burnt part of his face. He felt for his crotch. There was a bandage over the part where the other man's bite had broken the skin. There was also a bandage on the outside of his leg. He must have been shot there and didn't even feel it. His whole body hurt and his dick and face were both throbbing. He moaned, trying to push himself up into a sitting position. His eyes wouldn't focus, everything just looked like one big blur. When he swung his legs off the side of the bed he was on, that's when someone spoke to him.

"That's far enough," the voice said. The voice was familiar, but he couldn't place it. His head was pounding. Was he back at the compound? This didn't feel like the compound. He felt a hand on his arm and then a glass of water was placed into his hand. He took a long drink and poured the rest on top of his head, then rubbed his eyes to clear them. Finally something was coming into focus. "Daryl?," the voice said, "is that really you?"

Daryl stared at the man in front of him. He knew this man. Knew him well. But that had been in another life, a long time ago. And there was no way the man could be here in front of him now. He was dead. They were all dead, his prison family. The name finally came to him, flooding into his mind and hitting him like another slap to the face.

"Rick."


	12. Chapter 12

Day 83

Sand was in everything. The cars, her shoes, the creases on the cuffs of her jeans. Every time she wiggled her toes, she felt gritty. Beth felt like the sand somehow even managed to find its way into everything she ate. She also had an angry red sunburn on all the parts of her body that had not seen the light of day for a while. The worst was her thighs and hips. Along the lines where her bathing suit met her legs, her skin was raw and she could tell it was going to peel. Her jeans were so rough against her skin she had finally taken them off and put on some silly dress that one of the girls had found in the same seaside shop where they found the bikinis. Crystal had been the only one brave enough to go skinny dipping with so many men around.

"What the hell you got on?," Daryl asked her, poking his head inside the van now that they had stopped for a break.

"A dress," Beth informed him, "you know girls wear them sometimes." He raised his eyebrow at her. So she lifted the dress up, giving him a good look at her sunburn and the skimpy white panties she had on. "My jeans were rubbing me raw," she admitted. Without a word, he disappeared from view, returning a few minutes later with a mug full of something that he was mixing with a popsicle stick. Pointing at her, he gestured for her to lift up her dress again. Beth shrugged and pulled it up. She was past the point of caring who saw her in her underpants. Plus the little bit of breeze that was blowing in throught the open door of the van felt good against her scorching skin anyway.

"What is that?," Beth asked. Her tone implied that she didn't much care what it was. She would let someone slather dog shit on her if she thought it might help relieve the constant stinging pain.

"Cornstarch and water." She shrugged and gave a little hmph noise, letting him know she was only mildly impressed.

He knelt down, trying to use the popsicle stick so he wouldn't actually have to put his hands on her skin. But the stick wasn't scooping the thick liquid up, it was just dribbling back off into the cup. Daryl knelt down closer, trying to look at the burn and not at her crotch or the very small pair of panties she had on. Or the lace trim around the edges of them. He held the cup close and scooped out some of the mixture with two of his fingers, wiping it onto the tops of her thighs and carefully coating the areas where her skin was the reddest. He nudged her to roll on her side and then he rubbed it across the curve on the bottom of her backside. She let out a little moan and he felt his dick move inside his pants. He only wanted to help with her sunburn, he reminded himself.

"That feels so much better," she said. She was more than eager to roll over so he could get the other side. Then she sat up and took the cup, spreading a little around on the red area between her breasts. She gave him a big smile, her even white teeth biting down just a tiny bit on her lower lip.

"Let that dry," Daryl told her, suddenly feeling stiff and awkward. Beth nodded and handed the cup back to him. Crystal had been watching the scene wiht a sarcastic little smile on her face. She crawled over from her regular napping area.

"I got a burn too," she told Daryl. Then she pulled her tube top down to reveal her bare breasts, which were looking a little sunburnt, especially on the sides. "Want to lube me up?" Daryl scrunched up his face. He shoved the mug at her.

"I think you can reach those yourself," he informed her before scrambling out of the van. Her laughter was ringing after him.

"He acts like he's never seen a pair of tits before," Crystal announced.

"He would be the only man alive that ain't seen yours yet," Lauren told her. Beth and the other girls laughed. Crystal rolled her eyes at them. But the comment did seem to shut Crystal up. At least for now. She smeared some of the thin white paste on her breasts and then laid down to take another nap.

Daryl walked back to his bike and lit a smoke, trying to get the image of Beth lying spread eagle on the mattress in front of him out of his head. Since Neegan had been sleeping in the girl's van, Beth had started sleeping in one of the other vans with him, Mike and Tara. She had never mentioned anything about trying to kiss him that night on the porch, and he was afraid to bring it up. He didn't want her to stop speaking to him again.

Daryl finished his smoke and pitched the butt with a flick of his fingers. He looked up, shading his eyes. Neegan was on top of the semi cab with a pair of binoculars. He was slowly turning around in a circle. Looking for the same thing he always looked for now. People. Sometimes it was people to recruit, but most of the time he was looking for people to rob. It wasn't the most honorable way to survive, but it was keeping them alive and fed.

Daryl's brother taught him at a young age that it was better to steal than it was to starve. And Daryl still remembered the first thing he ever stole. His dad had spent whatever grocery money they had on booze and who knows what else. Maybe whores. And Daryl was hungry. Merle had taken him out fishing, but that had been a bust. On the way back, they cut through the neighbor's backyards. And that's when he had seen it. A lady had a whole pie cooling on her kitchen window sill. Daryl could still remember the smell of it. And how it had made his mouth immediately start watering.

They could hear the woman who must have made the pie in the kitchen, washing up her dishes. Merle walked around the front of the house and did what he called nigger knocking. This meant he pounded hard on the door and then ran away before anyone opened it. As soon as the woman left the kitchen and started walkind towards the front door, Daryl leaped up on the overturned garbage can and grabbed the pie. It was hot, and he almost dropped it. Merle pulled his shirt off and used it like a potholder to carry the steaming pastry. Then they ran home with it. Waiting for it to cool down was the hardest part. Once it wasn't mouth burning anymore, they leaned over the counter and ate the whole thing right out of the dish. All except one piece that Merle took into the bedroom and made their mother eat. Daryl couldn't remember if she had been in bed because his father beat her again, or because she was just that drunk. Maybe a little bit of both.

Stealing from these other camps was no different than taking that pie. They did what they had to do to survive. And Daryl would rather rob a hundred camps than have to watch Beth go to bed hungry. Neegan motioned for Daryl to climb up onto the cab of the truck with him. He handed Daryl the binoculars. But Daryl didn't need them. He could already see the small wisps of smoke rising into the morning air. They were white, which meant the fire was still burning.


	13. Chapter 13

Day 99

Crystal was looking at Beth with her face twisted up into a scowl. Beth smiled at her, thinking of what her mother used to tell her and Maggie when they were little. _If you don't stop making that mean nasty little face, your face is going to stick like that._ Beth had gone to dinner with Neegan at Greg's house. And Crystal was fuming mad about it. She was the one lying down on her back for him almost every night. She should have been the one to go to the dinner. Not Beth. Crystal glared at her. Beth just opened up her book and stuck her nose in it, ignoring the other girl.

Greg was the leader of the very large farming community they had found on their way up the coast. Blocks in the roads had forced the caravan further inland, and then they had seen the smoke from a large hot fire. When they arrived, it turned out the smoke was from a blacksmith's shop. The man had been making shoes for the horses these people had. The leader of the town had opened the gates for them. They had been given a temporary place to stay. And then he had invited Neegan to dinner at his home.

The people here had been living in a farming community before the turn. So supplying themselves with enough food and water was not a problem. The roamers were the problem. A large group of them had been piled up near the front gate when Neegan and the other guys on the bikes pulled up. They dispatched the dead quickly. And that's why Greg had been so eager to invite them in.

"I need someone with me that can put this fucker at ease," Neegan had explained to Beth, "and someone who is smart enough not to start spouting off about the things we did to keep ourselves fed on the way here." She nodded, understanding what he meant. Crystal had no manners. And she had a habit of running off at the mouth. He couldn't take her. Beth had been proud that he asked her. He could have easily taken one of the guys with him, since this was really more of a business meeting. But he wanted her.

What she had not been ready for was the way he was treating her during the meal and while they sat with the man in his living room afterwards. He had his arm around her, his other hand resting on her slim thigh. She told herself it was just some act that he was putting on. But it had felt real. Like they were some kind of couple. And it had felt good to have a man act so proud to have her by his side. Especially Neegan, who everyone in the group liked and respected. And it made her heart beat faster to be so close to him, the side of his much larger thigh pressed against her slimmer one. It made her feel special, like she had the night he kissed her.

He had walked her back up to the room where the girls were staying, one big hand on the small of her back. Before he had opened the door, he touched her cheek with the knuckles on the other hand. And then he was gone, stomping off down the hallway to fill Daryl and the other men in on what the leader of this town had discussed with him.

"Aren't you going to tell us what happened?," Lauren asked.

"Yeah, can we stay?," Ginny added. Beth dog eared her book and set it in her lap.

"Greg said he wants Neegan and the guys to be like security here, take out the roamers and watch out for other people. If they agree to do that, we can stay," Beth explained.

"What does Neegan want to do?," Crystal asked with a little piss in her voice. Beth felt like reminding her there was no point in kissing ass when Neegan wasn't around to hear it. But instead she just sighed.

"He didn't tell me," Beth answered. Crystal crossed her arms, looking smug. Beth didn't know why. Its not like Neegan discussed his strategies with Crystal. All he ever told her was what position he wanted to fuck her in. Beth guessed Neegan hadn't told her what he wanted to do because he wasn't sure yet. He might decide to stay here and take the deal Greg made with him. Or they might leave and try to push further north, like he had originally planned. Or he might kill everyone in this town and take the place over. In Beth's opinion, all three were equally likely possibilites.

Ginny had a little orange and white kitten in her lap. She found it on the front porch of the farmhouse they had been given to stay in, and no one had stopped her from taking it. Beth leaned over and scratched the little cat between the ears, moving down to the back of it's neck.

"I hope we stay," Ginny said quietly to Beth, "then maybe I can keep this kitty." Crystal rolled her eyes at them.

"Who cares about that dumbass cat?," Crystal said, walking over and flopping down on the bed. Beth was seriously thinking about giving that little bitch a piece of her mind. There was no reason for her to be mean to Ginny. But then there was a loud knock on the door before it was flung open. Neegan was in the doorway. Crystal jumped up, running over and throwing her arms around him. She reminded Beth of the springer spaniel her dad used to have. When her dad got home, the dog greeted him in the exact same manner. Beth felt a little smirk creep across her face. With her curly hair in pigtails, Crystal even sort of looked like a dog.

"Beth," Neegan said, nodding his head towards the hallway. He didn't explain what he wanted. Part of the benefit of being him was he didn't have to. Beth got up and headed for the hall, turning sideways to get past Crystal, who was hanging off the man like a cheap suit. _I have been missing you all day. Will I see you later?_ Beth waited for her to finish. She noticed that Neegan did kiss her and grab at her backside, but he did not invite her to come with them. Instead the bedroom door was practically shut in her face.

Neegan still didn't explain where they were going or what he wanted. He walked to the next door down the hall and ushered Beth inside. She looked around. This must be his room, she thought. His things were in a chair in the corner. And he shut the door behind them. Beth felt a little flutter of panic rise up in her chest. It felt strange to be alone in Neegan's bedroom with him. He sat down on the bed, patting the spot next to him. Beth took the few steps over to the bed and sat down, her heart beating wildly in her chest.

"What do you think we should do?," he asked her. His voice was softer than normal. When she didn't answer, looking at him with big wide eyes, a look of understanding spread across his face. Then he laughed. "Fuck. Not what should me and you do on this bed, what should we do about staying in this town or not." Beth blushed crimson red all the way up to her hairline. She giggled nervously.

"I don't know," she said, "maybe you should ask Carson or Daryl or someone." She didn't really understand why he even cared about her opinion.

"I want to know what you think we should do."

"I think you should take the deal that man was offering," Beth spit out. It was the truth, she was tired of being on the road. Even if they didn't stay permanently, they could at least rest here a while.

"Why?"

"Because we might not get a better one." Neegan looked at her. Mike and Tara wanted to take what they wanted from these people and move on. Carson wanted to take the place over. But Daryl and Harlan had said the same thing Beth did. And Neegan was leaning towards that himself. Killing these people would be stupid. Right now they were no threat to them and they were doing all the farm work. Taking what they wanted and leaving was just going to put them in the same position of scrounging for food in a month. And he was tired of scrounging. They were looking for a place to live. And this was a good a place as any.

"How'd you get so fuckin' smart?," he asked Beth. She blushed again and looked down. Beth liked to play shy. But he had been looking down her shirt when he sat next to her on the couch in that idiot Greg's living room. When he slid his hand up her leg, her nipples had gone as hard as rocks.

"What's going on with you and Dixon?," he asked her. Beth bit in her lip. Her face was really feeling hot now. She looked up, her big blue eyes on him.

"What do you mean?," she asked.

"I mean are you letting him fuck you?" Beth's eyes got even wider and her mouth fell open. Then she shut it and shook her head.

"No. We are just... friends," she said. She had been hoping for more, but nothing ever came of it. A few times she had tried to scoot closer to Daryl when they were lying down to sleep, but he always put his back to her.

"You sleep in that van with him every night," Neegan reminded her. He leaned in, close enough that she could feel his breath tickling her ear. "You sure he hasn't slid his dick inside your tight little cunt?" Beth jerked back and slapped at him. She hit the hard muscle of his arm, hurting her hand more than she hurt him.

"You're disgusting," she informed him. This made him howl with laughter. Beth stood up to leave but he caught her around the waist and pulled her down onto his lap. Shifting her weight, she felt something hard pressing against her thighs through his pants. She slapped at him a few more times, trying not to start laughing herself.

"Guess I ought to start watching my fucking mouth," he told her. Beth squirmed in his lap. He was holding onto her, but not with much effort. She could get up and leave if she really wanted to.

"You are not funny," she said, smacking at him again. It didn't sound very convincing, coming from someone that was trying really hard not to laugh. He caught her by the chin, tilting her face up so he could cover her mouth with his. He felt her hands pushing against his chest. Until he parted her soft pink lips with his tounge. Then her hands wound into the material of his shirt, pulling him closer.

Neegan stood, lifting her with one arm, and using the other arm to turn off the light and lock the door. Then he lay down on the bed, pulling Beth close to him. The soft sweet way she was kissing him was driving him crazy. He wondered if she had any sexual experience other than what those men had forced on her. From the inexperienced way she was kissing him, he doubted it.

Her hair was so soft, he pulled out the tie that was holding it so he could bury his face in her silky strands. And then he pulled it gently, using it to tilt her head back. Kissing her neck, behind her ears, he moved slowly down to the cleft between her breasts. Letting go of her hair, he unbuttoned the dress she had put on for dinner, pushing the top of it open. He reached up the back of her dress, groping at her back and looking for the clasp on her bra. All the time his mouth was on her, licking and biting at her through the thin lacy fabric. Beth's hands came up, taking the center of the front of the bra and twisting it. He heard a little click and then her bra fell open, revealing her hard pink nippples. As soon as he had the first one in his mouth her heard her gasp and then moan loudly.

Beth had no idea how this had happened, or why. All she was concious of now was his mouth and hands on her. Her body was on fire, and there was a hard throbbing between her legs that was almost painful. Her eyes were closed. When she felt him lift her dress up, she had a sudden flash of the time Daryl had rubbed the paste on her to help with her sunburn. Her legs fell open and then she felt the thin straps on the sides of her panties snap as they were ripped off her. The cold air hit her where she was wettest, sending a shiver up her spine.

She jumped slightly when she felt his head go between her legs, her thighs tensing and coming togther, squeezing his head between them. The short bristly hairs on the sides of his head tickled the soft skin on the insides of her thighs Then his hands came up, pinning her legs down to the bed. He buried his nose in the soft hair above her opening. She was afraid of what she might smell like, and embarrased to have someone's face in her most intimate area. Bucking her hips, she tried to make him back off. But he took that as an invitation, flicking his tounge over her, tasting her. Beth knew men liked girls to put their mouths on them, but she had never really thought about the possibilty that a man would want to put his mouth on her.

Her legs were straining against him. Until he started moving his tounge, then she suddenly felt like she couldn't open them wide enough. His hands left her thighs, moving down to where he could slip one thick calloused finger deep inside her. The waves of pleasure were rolling over her. And something was building up deep inside her body. He added a second finger and when he shoved it hard inside her, she felt herself explode. It felt like a muscle spasm happening in the most sensitive spot on her body.

Then she felt him move away from her. She heard the soft rustle of his clothes being removed. And then she felt his body touching hers again. This time with his skin against hers.

"Now it's my turn," he told her, kissing her hard on the mouth. She could taste the salty sweet tang of her own juices on his lips. He settled down between her legs, spreading them wide and lifting her knees up. Then she felt the hard press of the tip of him against her slick opening. He slipped just the tip of him inside her at first, and she gasped. She wasn't sure how big his dick was, but it was a lot bigger than his finger, and that had felt tight inside her. When he pushed all the way in, she cried out. He was supporting his weight on his elbows, but he stroked her face with his hands.

"Like that, dontcha?," he asked her. She could only whimper in response. At first it hurt, not like it had hurt when those men forced her, but more like it just felt a little uncomfortable. But once he started to move, it felt better. And then it started to feel good. Really good. And then he was jumping back, yanking out of her and she felt something warm and wet splash across the insides of her thighs. He flopped down on the bed, cursing at himself.

"What's wrong?," she asked him. He pulled her close, so her back was against his chest. It felt safe and comforting, being wrapped up in his arms. She found herself snuggling closer to him, letting the mass of his body engulf her.

"Nothing baby," he mumbled into her hair, "was trying to hold off until you finished." She nodded like she knew what he was talking about. Really she had no idea. Then she thought about how good it felt when he had his mouth on her. She had never had one before, but she was fairly certain that what happened to her was an orgasm.

"I think I already finished before you started," she said. He pushed her hair off her neck so he could kiss the soft skin under her ear.

"That's the good thing about being a woman, you can finish more than once," he whispered. Then he reached down and pulled the blanket over them. "Maybe next time," he said, pulling her close. Beth felt the panic she had felt earlier flutter inside her again. Next time? She hadn't even planned on there being a first time. Was he going to expect her to do this all the time? She wasn't sure how she felt about that. And what about Crystal. She was like his girlfriend or something.

"What about Crystal?," Beth asked softly. She was really a bit scared to ask at all. People didn't usually question Neegan. He chuckled softly.

"Crystal's not number one anymore."


	14. Chapter 14

Day 355 Part One

She moved slowly close, reaching her hand out to feel his arm. He recoiled from her touch, moving backwards on the small cot to press his back against the wall. Pulling her hand back, Carol let it fall to her side. She had not believed it until she came into the room and saw him for herself. And even now it seemed surreal, having him here in front of her after all this time. Daryl was alive. Mangled and scarred, but alive was alive.

Carol took a seat in the only chair in the room, trying to make herself less threatening. Daryl reminded her of a ferral animal stuck in a cage. Not only had he regressed back to the way he was before the group became a family, he was worse.

As she observed his behavoir, Carol realized she was scared. Not only of him, which was new for her, but for him. There were people that wanted him dead, for killing Abraham. Rick would talk them down, but Carol was more worried about what would happen after that. If they let Daryl out, what would he do? In his current state of mind, he might kill someone else or get himself killed by doing something crazy and violent. She could tell he was not going to want to stay here in Alexandria and play nice.

"What happened to you?," Carol asked.

"Cut myself shaving," he growled in response. He lifted his hand like he wanted to scratch at the hamburger meat side of his face and then stopped, placing his hand back on his leg.

"I don't mean your face," she said, "I mean where have you been all this time?" Daryl had a habit of sleeping too close to the campfire. She had guessed without asking that what happened to his face had been some kind of unfortunate accident. But the way he was acting about it made her think twice. Someone had down this to him.

"Rick send you in after I wouldn't tell him where my camp was?," Daryl asked. It had not escaped Daryl's attention that while they were overly concerned with where his camp was and how many people lived there, not a single one of them had bothered to ask about Beth. What she said at the cabin to him all those long months ago was true. Right from the beginning, she was just one more dead girl to all of them. Written off after the prison attack without a second thought.

Daryl at the door, and then he looked Carol up and down before smiling. The burnt part of his face twisting up into some kind of evil joker's mask. The grin Daryl gave her sent shivers up and down Carol's spine. There was so much anger and hatred inside him and he looked like he was thinking about turning it on her, maybe jumping her so he could take off out of the small room he was caged up in.

"No, I just wanted to see you," Carol lied. Really, Rick had sent her in. But only because he thought maybe she could get through to Daryl, find out what the hell was going on with him and where he had been all this time. It wasn't a total lie. She did want to see him.

"My people are goin' to be comin' for me," Daryl warned, "you don't want to be around when they get here." He meant it as a threat, but once he said it, he realized he really didn't want Carol here when Neegan showed up. If Neegan showed up. Maybe this would just be a convenient way for the big man to get rid of him. Maybe he would hold Beth in his arms to comfort her when he told her about poor Daryl's unfortunate demise.

"What people?," Carol asked. She was like a dog with a bone.

"Fuck you bitch," Daryl said, hoping that if he insulted her she might leave and he could go back to trying to jimmy the window open with a fork. But she just crossed her arms and stared at him. He saw he was going to have to do better than that. He turned his head, showing her the angry red side of his face. He saw her shrink back when she saw the red angry slash where part of his ear used to be.

"Like that?," he asked her, "Too bad ya weren't there to see it happen, I know how much you like settin' people on fire." Carol stood up, knocking her chair backwards.

"What the hell is wrong with you?," she asked him. He knew he struck a nerve now. She turned and fled the room, slamming the door behind her. Well that was easy, he thought. He had not even had to insult the stupid sweater she had on. Carol was gone, but she returned a few moments later. She hurled his crossbow into his lap and threw a packed bag on the bed next to him.

"You think we are so goddamn terrible, why don't you go on and get the fuck out of here then," Carol told him, swinging the door open wide and standing out of the way.

"This some kind of fucking trick?," Daryl asked. He swung the bag on his back, gripping his bow tightly. He never really felt complete without the bow in his hands. Except when Beth had been in his arms. But that was a thought for another time. Or for never.

"Does it look like a fucking trick?," Carol asked him, "Get the fuck out before Rick or someone else shows up. Don't ever come back here again." Daryl didn't need to be told twice. If she was stupid enough to let him go, he was going to get gone. He slung his bow over his shoulder on top of the bag Carol had given him and then he headed out into the hallway. "Head to the the left when you hit the door, the walls are easy to climb," Carol added. Daryl stopped. He turned, just long enough to give her a small nod of his head. It was only a spark of the man that had searched for her daughter in the woods, but it was enough for her to feel that old familiar pull in her heart. Once he was outside the door, she grabbed her own packed bag from where she had hidden it and took off after the man she had once loved more than anything in this world.

Rick looked down at the smoking engine. Then he stepped back and kicked at the bumper of the truck, sweaing under his breath. The first thought that came into his mind was the same one he always had whenever they had car trouble. He wished Daryl was there. And given Daryl's current state of mind, the thought angered him even more than the smoke rising from the truck's engine.

Glen and Carl came over, leaning in over the engine and taking a look to see if maybe some kind of magic fix it button would appear that they could push to make the truck start running again. Sasha rested her gun on the side of the truck near the back bumper.

"Don't know why you all keep looking at that engine," she said, "don't any of you know anything about cars."

"I know more than you do," Carl informed the woman. They were broke down on the side of the road. Which would have sucked in normal life, and it sucked even harder in the middle of the apocalypse. There was no need for Sasha to make it worse with her negative comments and bitchy attitude.

Once it was obvious that the truck was not going to be moving anywhere anytime soon, Michonne climbed down from the bed of the truck and started looking for sticks to make a fire. She had a small bundle in her arms when Rick called out to her.

"Whatcha doing?," he asked.

"Picking up sticks," she informed him with a sly smile. Carl laughed. Nothing like stating the obvious.

"What for?," Rick asked, a smile playing around the corner of his mouth.

"We are halfway between Alexandria and Hilltop. Can't make it to either before nightfall. Might as well camp here and start off fresh in the morning," Michonne said before she went back to picking up sticks. She smiled at Carl when he ran to join her. Then she dropped her bundle, keeping one long sturdy stick in her hands.

"En garde," she called to the boy, challenging him. Carl quickly swooped down to grab a stick of simliar length and the two of them started chasing each other around between the trees, sticks swinging and clattering against the trees.

"You keep making all that noise and a whole herd of walkers is going to be on us in two seconds," Maggie called over to them. It didn't sound like a very serious warning, since she was having a hard time holding in her laughter. She saw Rick was heading across the street to the woods on the other side.

"Where you going?," Maggie asked him, "looking for more firewood?"

"Yeah," he told her, "alone." This made Glen smile big and silly. After all the time they had been on the road together, it wasn't exactly a secret that Rick didn't like anyone around when he had bathroom business to attend to.

"Don't be too long or we will have to come looking," Maggie called out over Glen's teasing remarks. Rick gave her a wave to let her know he heard her. Then he headed further into the woods where he could have a little privacy. He did need to take a piss, but he also thought it might not be the worst idea to check around the area and make sure none of Daryl's new best friends were hanging around, ready to jump them.

Rick was zipping up his pants when he heard the twig snap behind him. He turned with his hand on his gun, but he was too late. His face rocked hard to the side as a fist smashed into the side of it. Then he felt his gun snatched from his grip as someone else kicked his knees out from under him. He fell backwards into his own piss puddle and lay there looking up at his captors.

Rick only recognized one of them. He was the young black man that Rick had let go after he and his people killed his three companions at the gates of Hilltop. He was the one Rick had sent back with a message for their leader. The man smiled down at him. Next to him was a woman with long black hair and a thin silver ring in her nose. And on the other side was the biggest man Rick had ever seen. He was holding a wicked looking bat in his hand.

"Remember me asshole?," Mike asked him. Rick opened his mouth to answer and the man spit on him. He looked like he wanted to do more, but the big man put his hand on the younger man's chest, pushing him back a few inches. Before he spoke he leaned forward slightly, fingering the bat at his side.

"Where the fuck is Daryl?"


	15. Chapter 15

Day 129

Beth turned the knob on the stove. The clicking noises came and then the coils started to change from grey to red, making Beth smile. Immediate heat without having to start a fire, it just never got old. She watched what Lauren was doing out of the corner of her eye, reminding the girl to use extra salt on what she was making for Neegan.

Greg, the leader of the town they were living in now, had brought some steaks over to thank Neegan for something the man had done for him. Beth didn't ask what. She knew by now that sometimes ignorance was bliss. Besides the steaks, they had salad greens from the gardens that the girls had been helping to take care of. Plus potatoes and some carrots. It would have been a good dinner, even before the turn, but now anything not out of a can just tasted like heaven in your mouth.

Beth counted the steaks again. Each of the girls could share one, and that left five more. One for Neegan, Harlan and Carson could share, Mike and Tara could also split one, since Tara didn't eat much meat anyway. And that left one for Daryl. He had been sulking around for the last week, going off by himself a lot. Beth hoped a good meal might put him in a better mood. She knew vension steaks were kind of his thing, so she guessed he would really enjoy a real steak.

Looking over the food on the counters, Beth ticked things off in her mind. Cooking for a group this big was a bit of a challenge, but she was getting used to it. The potatoes were boiling in a giant pot of water, and the greens were washed and sitting in a bowl waiting for dressing. The carrots were coated in brown sugar, roasting in the oven. Now the steaks just had to be cooked. And Beth didn't trust any of the other girls to help with that. Lauren's mother had taught her a little about cooking, but the other girls could barely boil water without burning it.

Beth finally got everything ready and cooked to perfection. Crystal showed up once the work was done, like she usually did, and graciously offered to take Neegan's food up to his room for him. Beth handed her the plate, honestly not caring who took the food up. Neegan wasn't stupid, he knew who did his cooking. Beth and Lauren had eaten their food standing in the kitchen while the rest was cooking. So Lauren took the other food to the dining table and went to find Carson, Harlan, Tara and Mike. They knew about the steaks, so she guessed they would be easy to find. Last she had seen, they were out on the porch drinking beers, glancing into the house eagerly from time to time. Beth got a cold beer from the fridge and picked up the plate she had made for Daryl, heading out the back door to take it to him.

He was sitting by the small campfire by himself, like she had guessed. It made her smile a little. He migt be sulking, but at least he was predictable. Balancing the edge of the hot plate against her hip and holding the other edge with her hand, she stood there watching him for a moment. He was leaned back in a camping chair, lifting a cigarette to his lips and then blowing the smoke out through his nostrils like a dragon. She closed the distance between them and tapped the side of her chair with her foot.

"Room service," she said with a big smile. He looked startled. Like maybe he had been deep in thought and she had interrupted him. The funny idea came floating through her mind like a feather on the breeze. _If I was Daryl Dixon what would I sit by the fire and think about?_ It made her smile bigger. Motorcycles, hunting and fishing, oh my! She leaned down, thrusting the plate at him so he had the choice to either take it or have it's contents dumped in his lap. Then she stuck the beer in the little mesh cupholder on the arm of the chair.

Daryl was fumbling with the plate and the smoke in his hand, so Beth snatched it from between his fingers. She took the camping chair next to him, crossing her shapely legs and leaning back. Holding the cigarette between her fingers like she had seen Daryl do, she brought it to her mouth and took a drag. She was thinking about how cool she knew she looked. Until she actually pulled the smoke into her lungs, then she started coughing like she was about to die.

Beth looked down at the horrible little fire stick, with its flaming orange tip that seemed to be taunting her. Then she flung the nasty thing into the fire and pounded a little on her own chest, coughing the last remnants of the smoke out into the night air. Daryl smiled at her. It was just a little half smile that he tried to hide, but it still counted. She had seen it.

"Damn girl!," he said, finally looking down and noticing the giant steak on his plate, "you make all this?" Beth nodded.

"Lauren helped," she said, not feeling comfortable taking all the credit. Daryl ignored the knife she brought him, stabbing the steak with his fork and turning his head sideways to take a bite. Watching him eat always made her curious about his background. Beth wondered what it would have been like to be brought up in the kind of home where no one bothered to teach you proper table manners. It was a little sad actually. And it made her want to hug him and give him the love and encouragement that he had never recieved as a child. But on the other hand, maybe it was best. Daryl was much more equipt than most people to live in the world the way it was now. Adapting to life after the turn had been chilling for her, but it had only been a minor adjustment for Daryl.

Beth saw he was trying to twist the top off the beer she brought him without setting his plate down, so she got up and opened it for him. The bare skin on her leg brushed against the fabric of his pants, and she found she didn't mind it. The shorts she had on were white, and they were so short the underside of her ass showed when she bent down to open the beer. Her tan legs trailed down into her cowboy boots. Once she had the top off the beer, she took a long swig of it before handing it back to Daryl. Then she sat back down in her chair.

She noticed Daryl looking at her legs. Then he frowned and looked back down at his plate. He had that look on his face again. The one he kept giving her, like he had something to say to her that he was keeping to himself. Whatever it was, she wished he would just spit it out. She was sick of trying to figure out what it was.

"New shorts?," he asked her through a mouthful of steak. Beth nodded, looking down at them and feeling the sudden urge to yank on the material and try to make them longer. "Neegan give 'em to ya?" She nodded again. Daryl raised an eyebrow at her and went back to his meal.

Daryl didn't say anything else, but he watched her through his bangs that were falling forward into his face as he ate. She crossed her legs, then uncrossed them. Her damn shorts were so short he could see everything except her fucking cooter. And unlike most of the men around here, he was trying not to look. What bothered him the most was they just didn't look like something Beth would wear. A bathing suit at the beach he understood, and then the short dress because she was sunburnt. But other than that, the most revealing thing he had ever seen her in was a polo with the top few buttons undone. Or maybe a tank top at the prison when they were gardening and it was scorching hot out. But since half the guys had been in their underwear, Beth's attire had not seemed out of place then.

They sat without speaking for a while. Just the sound of Daryl's open mouthed chewing breaking the silence. Beth could tell now that he had something specific he was thinking about saying to her. The thing. Whatever he had been holding in and thinking about whenever he looked at her lately. And Daryl didn't respond well to prodding. There was nothing she could do besides sit and wait him out. He finished his food and set his plate on the ground, licking his fingers and washing it all down with the last gulp of beer in the bottle. Then he lit up another smoke. Finally he spoke.

"What are you doing?," he asked Beth. She tilted her head, her ponytail leaning with her and falling over onto her shoulder.

"Sitting here, what do you mean?," she said. Daryl wasn't sure if she was playing with him, or if she really had no idea what he was talking about.

"With Neegan," he clarified. Now her eyes lit up with understanding. Then she looked down at her lap, her cheeks flushing with shame. What was she doing? She wished someone would explain it to her. Beth had just gone into his room to talk to him. And then everything had happened so fast. The next thing she knew her stuff was in his room. And Crystal hated her. She said the only thing she could say about it. The truth.

"I don't know."

"You sleepin' with him?," Daryl asked her. He knew. But he had to hear her say it to make it real. Beth didn't look up from her lap. She only nodded.

"I didn't mean to," she said quietly. That was the truth too. She liked the man. But she had not meant to let things go so far so fast before she had time to figure out what she wanted. Beth had a few boyfriends, but they had all been her own age. And she had never done more with them than kiss and maybe fondle a little over the clothes.

"He ain't forcin' you is he?," Daryl asked, feeling a tight knot form in his stomach. He didn't think Neegan would do something like that, but you never knew with people. Beth shook her head.

"No, he wouldn't hurt me." She was fairly sure of that. If anything, Neegan went out of his way to make her feel safe and secure. Even before she slept with him. That was the main appeal of being with him.

"He is still fuckin' those other girls. Ain't he?" Beth nodded. She had not been sure what would happen with Crystal and the other girls. Neegan had spent the first few nights with her alone. After that, when he took Crystal and Jasmine with him instead, Beth expected to feel jealous. But really she just felt relieved to get a full night of rest without Neegan's giant limbs tangled around her and his loud snoring in her ear.

"I don't really mind," she admitted. She picked at a string hanging off the end of her shorts, still not wanting to look up at Daryl. There would be judgement on his face and she didn't want to see it. She knew what she was doing was wrong. Sex was only supposed to be between a husband and wife. Not some random guy she kind of liked and every other girl in the house. She wasn't even in love with him, if there even was such a thing. Beth didn't even want to think about what her father would say if he could see her now. But then she felt Daryl's hand on hers.

"You deserve better," he said. She looked up, her eyes meeting his. There is was. The thing. What he had been holding back from telling her. Of all the things she imagined him wanting to say to her, that was the last thing she ever expected. And when their eyes locked, she saw it. That gleam in his eyes. It had been there when they were alone in the funeral home together that day in the kitchen. But only for a moment. This was so much more intense than that. And this time she didn't look away because she was nervous. The look made her feel warm and cozy inside, like she was sinking into a warm bath. And where his hand was touching hers, she couldn't describe the feeling. But she had never felt like that when any other boy touched her. It was like his skin was made of liquid fire.

Beth felt it in the pit of her stomach. The way he was looking at her. Good god. All Daryl's strange behavior towards her was finally making sense. Her mind was still catching up, but her heart knew immediately what was happening. He was in love with her. And she was in love with him. How had she not realized that up until now. She took a deep breath. There was only one way she knew for sure to confirm her feelings.

Beth leaned forward. She felt like she was moving in slow motion. The world was spinning around her. And then her lips touched his. The kiss was brief and feather light, almost like it never happened. But it sent shivers rocketing down into her core. She felt like she was floating on top of the world. That only lasted a moment before she remembered her situation and she came crashing back down to earth, tears filling her eyes. Why had Daryl waited to long to let her know how he felt? Now she finally knew. And it was already too late.

 **** I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. If you have gotten this far. I was wondering how are you liking the time hops? Is it making things confusing to follow or more interesting? Let me know. As always I own nothing from TWD, only my own characters and a big thank you to everyone who left a review so far, sometimes I get great ideas from them so keep them coming. ****


	16. Chapter 16

Day 140

Beth woke up. The room was dark, but not so dark that she couldn't see. That meant it was either really late at night, or really early in the morning, depending on ones perspective. She had fallen asleep at a decent hour, so it was early morning to her. And she liked being up at this time. Everyone else was still asleep. She knew she could have a few quiet moments to herself, a rare treat these days. And she was thinking she might make herself tea and sit on the back steps sipping it and watching the sun come up.

Neegan was in the bed next to her, his body radiating excess amounts of heat the way he always did. For now, it made her hot, but she knew come winter she would be grateful for it. Winter on the road before the prison had been terrible. Beth had never been able to get warm no matter what she did. She and Carl had taken to sleeping zipped up in one sleeping bag together to try and stay warm, until her father found out and made them stop. Taking into consideration who and how many people she was sharing her bed with now, the thought of her father getting upset over her and Carl snuggling with all their clothes on was a lot more funny than it had been at the time.

Lauren was sleeping on the other side of the big man, and he was turned towards her, his big arms wrapped around her slender form. His back was to Beth. Which was lucky for her. Trying to wiggle out of his grasp took more gymnastics skills than she really felt like putting forth this early in the morning, especially when she had to pee. She crawled slowly out of bed, taking her pillow and shoving it against the big man's back so he would think she was still there. Then she tiptoed naked around the room, looking for her clothes. She found the dress Lauren had on the night before and pulled it on over her head. They wore about the same size and shared clothes often, so Beth knew she wouldn't mind. It was better than having to turn on the light and risk waking her. And him.

The dress was patterned in different colors of blue. It had thin straps and on Beth it hung all the way down to the floor. She held it up, waking silently on the balls of her bare feet until she got to the door. Easing it open, she pressed on the hard wood near the top hinge to keep it from squeaking. The motion reminded her of Maggie. Beth's sister used to sneak out so often, she could walk down the whole flight of creaky old stairs in their farmhouse without making a single sound. Beth edged out the slight opening in the door and then shut it behind her. She lifted the hem of her dress back up and headed for the bathroom.

Once she was done, Beth headed back out into the hall, holding her dress off the floor in one hand. The carpet in the hall was rough against her feet. She didn't hear a single noise behind her. But then suddenly there was an arm snaking around her waist and a hand covering her mouth. Beth squeaked in suprise, the noise muffled by the hand over her mouth.

"Sssh," Daryl said, "its just me." Then she felt him let go of her. He was lucky he had spoken up quickly, because he almost got his finger bitten off. Beth whipped around to face him, suddenly very aware of the fact that she had nothing on under her dress.

"You scared the shit outta me," she said. He was looking rather pleased with himself, so she guessed that meant she wasn't going to get an apology. He had a pair of raggedy looking jeans on, with no shirt and his leather vest on. She felt a giggle start to rise up inside her, but she swallowed it back down. She had to say, those were some interesting looking pajamas. Then a very dirty thought crossed her mind. _He probably sleeps naked._ The heat started rising up into her cheeks and she felt her nipples pucker up, poking at the thin fabric of her dress.

"Come on," he whispered, taking her by the hand and pulling her down the hall towards his bedroom. She hesitated a moment, glancing back towards the closed door of the room where Neegan slept. "Its early," Daryl whispered, "no one is gonna be up for a while." One more glance and then she nodded and let him lead her down the hall into his room.

The door clicked shut behind them and Beth let out a breath that she didn't know she was holding in. Then she felt herself smashed against Daryl's chest, his arms around her. She hugged him back, reaching under the vest he was wearing so it was wrapped around them both. The faint smell of campfire smoke clung to the leather, and she closed her eyes as she breathed it in. His hands moved, one was on the small of her back now. He was stroking her hair with the other one, running his fingers through the soft curls that were still fluffed up around her head from rubbing against her pillow while she slept.

"You didn't tell him." It was more of a statement than a question. She had slept in Neegan's bed, so clearly she had not told him she didn't want to sleep in bed with him anymore. Beth held Daryl tighter, not wanting the only private moment they were likely to have for a while ruined by talking about Neegan.

"I'm scared to tell him," she admitted. And it was the truth. Neegan was not the kind of man you just said no to. Maybe she could have said no, before the first time. But now things were more complicated.

"I can talk to him..." Daryl offered for at least the tenth time. Beth shook her head vigorously.

"It would be better coming from me," she said. It would be better coming from her, and it would be best if Daryl was not within killing range when the telling happened.

"He has four other girlfriends," Daryl said, "how much could he even care?' Beth didn't know how to answer his question without sounding like an ego maniac. Neegan liked her best. More than the other girls. That's what he told her at least. And he sounded pretty god damn sincere. But maybe Daryl was right. Maybe Neegan said that same crap to Crystal and Jasmine too, when he was alone with him. He probably did, she told herself. And that gave Beth some hope. It was a new and strange feeling, hoping the man she was sleeping with liked the other girls he was sleeping with better than he liked her.

"Just give me a little more time, let me try and talk to him," Beth said. She felt Daryl's face come down into her hair, smelling it before his hand went under her chin. He tilted her head back and kissed her softly on the lips. She flicked her tounge out, tasting him, digging into his back with her fingers. He kissed her back, his tounge dancing with hers. Her breasts pressed up against against the hard muscles of his bare chest through the thin fabric of her dress. She could feel him now, growing hard against the flat plane of her stomach. But then his hands moved up to firmly grip her arms. He pushed her back forcefully, away from him.

"I can't," he told her, "not like this." He let go of her arms and she backed away from him, sitting down on the bed and pulling her knees up so she could wrap her arms around her legs. Daryl put his arm on the wall, resting his forehead on it. The other hand clenching into a fist. He was having a hard time controlling himself. There were so many things he wanted to do. All at the same time. And they were all flashing through his mind, jumbling together. But he knew one thing for sure. He would not be able to stand it if he made love to Beth and then had to watch her go back to bed with another man. Especially one that he considered his friend. Daryl clenched his fist harder. He might kill someone if that happened.

Beth willed herself to stay on the bed. Not to go to him. But it was like her body moved of it's own accord. Across the room, her long dress dragging on the carpet behind her. She wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning her head into his back, like she had outside that shack where they found the moonshine.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, "I'm sorry, so sorry." It came out feeling more like a prayer. And she had not prayed in a long time. Not since she prayed for Daryl to be alright that night that she was stuck in that tree. And a lot of good that had done her.

"We could just leave," she said. Leaving was something she had been thinking about for a while. But this was the first time she had said it out loud. Daryl turned away from the wall and wrapped her up in his arms again.

"And go where," he said, "its not safe for us, not alone." He didn't want to say the rest. _Not after what happened to you the last time we were alone._ This group wasn't perfect. But it was strong. They would be safe as long as they stayed. Beth nodded. She knew he was right, leaving was just her wishful thinking. She tilted her head up, taking his face in her hands and bringing it down so she could kiss his mouth.

Daryl let her kiss him, but she could feel his body tense up. The muscles in his jaw twitched under her hands. He was fighting to maintain control of himself. A fight he was quickly losing. The world was crumbling around them, and he had her here now. Alone. Willing and in his arms. If he felt her tounge on him again, he wasn't going to be able to stop this time. But Beth just gave him one soft gentle kiss. Lips brushing against lips. And then she was out of his arms, backing away and heading for the hall. Getting out of his room before she made him do something that he couldn't take back.

Beth was in the window sill, holding Ginny's cat in her lap. Stroking it's soft fur and listening to it's little purr motor run. She still had Lauren's dress on, but she had at least scrounged around and found a clean pair of underpants to wear under it. She was watching Daryl and Neegan out the window of the house. Along with some of the other men, they were spitting logs. Trying to get a good size pile of wood stacked up before the weather turned and winter showed it's ugly face. All day long, she had been watching them and trying to think of the right words. Words that would release her from the relationship she had managed to entangle herself in. Kind words. She had never broken up with anyone before. Was there a kind way to do it? The truth would not go over well. That was the only thing she was sure of.

Closing her eyes, she leaned her head against the window pane and sighed. It came out in a soft little high pitched whine. The cat cocked it's head, looking up at her as if it thought she was a silly and stupid girl. And she guessed maybe that's what she was.

She felt a soft touch on her shoulder. When she turned, she saw a rose there. Neegan was leaning against the wall next to her, holding the flower out for her. He stroked her cheek with it before she took it from him and held it to her nose, breathing in the sweet musky fragrance before she tucked it behind one ear.

"Didn't hear you come in," she said. She lied. He stomped like a moose. She had heard him come in the door downstairs, stomp through the kitchen, take him boots off and then pound up the stairs and march into the bedroom. She wasn't sure why she lied. The cat let out a soft little meow of protest before it leaped down from her lap and took off out into the hall.

Neegan brushed her hair back from her face and stroked the soft round part of her cheeks with his thumb. Beth looked up and him and smiled. He noticed, and not for the first time, that her smile didn't go all the way up to her big blue eyes. She was faking. Something was bothering her. And he meant to find out what it was. He didn't like to see her unhappy. Kneeling down, so they were eye to eye, he took her hand.

"What's wrong?," he asked her. She took a breath. Then he watched her turn to look out the window before turning back to him. She was looking at someone out there. Neegan felt his body clench with a sharp stab of jealousy and anger. He had assumed Beth was upset because he went back to sleeping with the other girls after he slept with her. But now he was getting the idea that something else might be going on. Beth tried to force herself to speak. He asked her what was wrong. This was her moment. She cleared her throat.

"I... I... I don't want to keep sleeping with you," she blurted out. That was not what she had planned to say. She had meant to tactfully lead up to that part, filling the space with a lot of insincere compliments. She racked her brain, trying to come up with something else.

"And why is that?," he asked her. He was still under control. For now. But she could tell he was getting angry. When he was angry he got that crazy tick in his left eyebrow. And she had just seen it jerk slightly. Tick.

"You are sleeping with those other girls," Beth said. It was the lamest excuse she could think of. But at least it was one that wouldn't get Daryl killed. "That's not the way I was raised."

She saw his face relax. Beth wasn't sure why, but what she said seemed to please him. He got up. For a second, she thought the talk was over and he was leaving. _That was easier than I thought it was going to be._ But he was only walking over to the door to shut it. He came back over and knelt down next to her again. He took her slender hands in one of his meaty paws, then put his other hand on her thigh.

"You are different from the other girls," he told her, "I only use them to spare you. They don't mean anything to me." Beth looked out the window again, not really meaning to. She had to turn this conversation back around. Declarations of love from Neegan was not where this was supposed to be going. Suddenly he gripped down hard on her hands, making her wince.

"Who are you looking at out there?," he asked.

"No one," she lied. He let go of her hands, one hand snaking around behind her head and twining into her hair. Then he kissed her. Hard. He forced her mouth open, his tounge pushing in. Then she felt the straps of her dress being pulled from her shoulders. He ripped his mouth from hers, holding her close and resting his head against her bare breasts.

"You're mine," he told her. Taking the bud of one soft pink nipple into his mouth, he sucked it gently. She felt a soft moan escape from her lips, her body betraying her as it responded to his touch. He took her hips, standing her up so he was kneeling in front of her. He pulled her dress down the rest of the way and then whipped her panties off so that she was standing in front of him in all her naked glory. Beth moved her hands to cover herself, but he grasped them and held them down at her hips.

"These are mine," he told her, sucking at he breasts again, one after the other. Making the pink tips of them go hard in his mouth. Then he spun her, so she was facing away from him. He took her by the thighs, his hands so big he could almost wrap his fingers all the way around her slim legs. After spreading her legs apart, he put a hand on her back, bending her over so her hands were resting on the window sill she had just been sitting on.

"These are mine," he said as he touched her legs. She felt his finger slip between them, "and this is mine." He shoved thick finger into her hard and fast, making her gasp. Then he removed it and replaced it with his mouth, spreading apart her folds and flicking his tounge across her slit. She arched her back, ass up, pushing herself closer to his face. He pulled back, not wanting her to find her release until he was done with her.

He got up, pulling her over and bending her over the bed. Her from round behind in the air, just a hint of her cleft showing between her cheeks. Pushing his pants down, he freed his erection stroking at it a few times while he looked at her. He smiled and then gripped her hard by the hair, pulling her head back and nipping at her neck and the backs of her shoulders. She could feel the tip of him flush against her opening. And then he was growling into her ear.

"You belong to me, you fucking understand that?," he asked. She nodded as best she could with his hand in her hair.

"I understand," she said. He released her hair, lettting her head fall forward. Using one foot, he kicked her legs further apart before gripping her hips with both hands. Then he pushed into her. He slid in slowly at first, finishing each movement with a hard pump at the end. Pinned between the bed and his body, Beth couldn't move. All she could do was close her eyes and grip the blankets on the bed. She didn't want to like it, but with each thrust he was hitting that sensitive spot deep inside her. She was on the verge, biting down on her lip to try and keep from enjoying what he was doing to her. But when he ran the pad of his thumb across her backdoor, she came unraveled, crying out. Her walls clenched, spasming around him over and over again. When he finished, he did not withdraw. Instead he stayed inside her while he leaned down and kissed her on the cheek. Then he whispered quietly into her ear.

"If I ever catch you with another man, I will beat him to death with my bare hands."

 **** Thanks to everyone that took the time to review. ****


	17. Chapter 17

**** Happy Walking Dead Day Everyone! ****

Day 355 Part Two

Neegan and his men had a feeling a smaller group from the one that had taken Daryl would be heading to Hilltop soon. One of their people had been shot there, so they would be coming for him, or his body. But they would also want to know what had happened with the large collection of food and supplies they were supposed to have been picking up.

They waited about halfway between the two towns with spike strips ready to roll out onto the road, hoping to get lucky. Some scouts were waiting about a mile down the road with a radio. And when they came running back to let Neegan know what had happened, he couldn't believe his ears. Not only had a group come. Their vehicle had broken down about half a mile away. And the man that had led the assualt on Mike's collection group was with them. The man might not be the leader of the whole town, but he was high enough up to be bargained with. And they owed him some personal payback.

Dropping the wood she was carrying, Michonne grabbed her sword. Pulling it quicky from its sheath, she turned to face what she assumed was a walker. Instead she saw a woman with a gun to Rick's head. His hands were tied behind his back and the left side of his face was swelling up. Michonne edged towards the woman, sword in hand. But then she heard a sound from behind her. It sounded like someone was making clucking noises with their tounge.

"Ah Ah Ah, I wouldn't do that if I was you," a voice said. Michonne turned, finding herself surrounded by unfamiliar faces. The man that spoke was taller and larger than the rest. He had closely cropped hair and a thick leather jacket on.

"DAD!," Carl screamed, holding up his gun and pointing it at the woman that was holding his father hostage. Rick shook his head at the boy. Tara gripped her gun, grabbing Rick by the hair with the other hand and shoved her gun up under his chin.

"Hold it right there junior," Tara told the boy, "wouldn't want to have to splatter your dad's brains all over my new shirt." Michonne turned, looking around. There had to be at least a dozen men surrounding them. And those were just the ones she could count. She put her sword back in the sheath and put her hands up. A young man just a little older than Carl edged closer to the boy. He had a large bandage wrapped around one of his arms.

"Nice and easy," the big man told Carl, "hand it over and no one gets hurt." Carl hesitiated. Every instinct in his body was telling him to shoot the big man and run. Then he relaxed his grip and let the other boy take his gun from his hand. As soon as it left his grip, he felt naked and afraid. Michonne felt the barrel of a shotgun pressing into her back. What a fucked up world this was that she could tell what kind of gun someone had by how the end of it felt shoved into her back.

"Hands behind your back," Mike told her. Michonne looked at Rick. Then she put her hands behind her back. One of them kept the gun on her and someone else duct taped her wrists together. The same was done to Carl. Then the big man walked over and looked down at Michonne. He lifted up his hand and slapped her hard across the face. Not hard enough to knock her out, but hard enough to draw some blood.

"You said no on was going to get hurt," Carl yelled at the man. This made the big man laugh. He turned to face the boy, bending down so they were eye to eye.

"I lied."

Carl was scared. Nothing good was going to happen here. The big man grabbed him by the upper arm and walked him towards the road. There was still some hope that Glen and Maggie and Sasha might be able to help them. Carl wasn't sure what the big man would do to him if he yelled out a warning, but he thought he might chance it anyway.

"Glen! Maggie! RUN!," he shouted. Carl expected the big man to hit him, but what he did was even worse. He laughed. The sound sent a chill up Carl's spine. When they came around the bend, Carl's heart sank. Glen, Maggie and Sasha were kneeling by the side of the road. Already stripped of their weapons, their hands were taped behind their backs. Carl felt the tears start to well up in his eyes. He didn't want to cry. They had been through so much together, and gotten out of so many bad and hopeless situations. But for some reason, Carl knew this time was going to be different. Not everyone was going to get out of this one alive.

Once the big man had all of them on their knees in a row, he walked back and forth in front of them. For a while he just looked at them, smiling from time to time. He seemed to be waiting for something to happen. Then Carl heard the sound of a motorcycle getting closer. He felt a small swell of hope in his chest. Maybe Aaron and Eric were coming to save them. But when the bike pulled up, Carl saw it was just another one of this man's soldiers.

"Found the town Carson and Mark were talking about, looks like they are set up pretty nice," the man said.

"Fucking told you," Mark added. The big man smiled. Then he turned to his small group of captives.

"What's the name of your town?," he asked them. His question seemed to be directed towards Rick, but it was Michonne that answered.

"Alexandria," she said, the side of her mouth still a little numb. These men already knew where their home was. Holding out information now was only going to get them killed faster.

"Is Daryl alive?," Neegan asked, "or did you fuckers kill him already."

"He's alive," Rick said. Carl was having a hard time understanding what was going on. Were these Daryl's people now? And why would Daryl be with people so terrible?

"We would never hurt Daryl," Carl said, his voice cracking a little as he twisted his wrists, pulling at the tape. Neegan bent down, almost kneeling in front of the boy. He found this boy interesting. He was afraid, but he wasn't a coward.

"Why is that?," he asked the boy.

"Because he was part of our group," Carl said, "he used ta be my friend."

"You are Daryl's old group?," Neegan asked. The boy nodded. Neegan stood up, scratching at his head and thinking about this new development. If these people knew Daryl, they knew Beth too. He thought the woman with the brown hair had a familiar look to her. Could it be? This old world was just getting smaller and smaller. He walked over to Maggie, poking at her chest with the tip of his bat, enjoying how she flinched back away from him.

"Missing a sister?," he asked her. The look on her face said it all. She jerked her arms, trying to twist her hands free of the tape.

"What did you do to my sister?," she spit and him. He knelt down, grabbing her face by the chin. She tried to jerk away, but he kept a firm hold on her. He looked her over, giving her a nod of approval. She did look like Beth, not as pretty, but he could see some similar features.

"What makes you think I would hurt my own wife?," he asked the woman. Her eyes flew open. No way was her sister married to this creepshow. Beth was barely even interested in boys, let alone men twice her age.

"You're a fucking liar!," Maggie said, jerking her face away from his grasp. He backed away from her and laughed again. Now he was back to business. So what if these people knew Daryl and Beth? They had still killed a few of his men and injured even more. Carl watched the big man. He started stalking back and forth in front of them again like a big cat. Once he decided on what he wanted to say, he stopped and looked down at them. This time he spoke directly to Rick.

"You and your people interrupted one of my business transactions. And even worse than that, you killed three of my men. And then you shot two more of them and kidnapped another." He paused, watching their faces for a reaction. "I really should kill you all where you stand, but instead I am going to make a deal with you." He swung the bat up, tapping it against his hand lightly.

"Alexandria is mine now. Once a week I am going to send my men there to pick up half of the food and supplies you have." He stopped in front of Rick, looking down at the man.

"Like fuck you will," Rick said, "we don't make deals with people like you." Michonne sucked in her breath. That was truly stupid. Why couldn't Rick ever think smart. He could have just agree to whatever this man wanted and then they could deal with him and his band of thugs later. When they weren't tied up. Rick was going to get them killed. Neegan walked over and grabbed Carl up by the arm. He shoved him back down onto his knees in front of the group. Carl couldn't hold back anymore, and the tears started running down his face, leaving tracks of clean skin in the smears of dirt.

"People like me?," Neegan asked. He was close to raging now, and Michonne noticed even a few of his own men looked scared. He walked around Carl and got down in Rick's face. "YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHO THE FUCK YOU ARE DEALING WITH!" He waved Donnie over. The man was crazy as a shithouse rat, and that said a lot coming from Neegan. He often sent the man out on spy missions just to keep him away from their camp. Just his presence usually made people uncomfortable. Honestly, he even made Neegan want to back away. And the way he was looking at the boy in the hat like a piece of meat, it was very disturbing indeed.

"Rape the boy and then beat him to death in front of his father," Neegan told the man. Everyone that was tied up on the roadside started screaming at once. Neegan smiled. He saw he had their attention now. Fuckers. Donnie shoved the boy down onto the pavement. Carl's face hit the road, his ear smashing down first and making him cry out in pain. He could feel his pants being yanked down, and then the hot pavement against his thighs and genitals.

"We will take your deal!," Rick screamed out above the commotion. Neegan stepped over the boy and approached him slowly. Agonizingly slowly.

"Thought you didn't make deals with people LIKE ME?" He bent down close to Rick's face. "Have a change of heart?"

"Whatever you want, just let him go," Rick said, the panic clear in his voice.

"One week from today, I am going to show up for half your supplies and Daryl," Neegan confirmed.

"Yes, one week," Rick repeated like a parrot. Neegan turned back to the boy. Donnie had his pants off, getting ready to lean down and shove his dick into the boy. This had really only been a threat to scare them. Donnie was just too much of a creep to figure that out. Neegan grabbed him hard by the arm, yanking him up and away from the boy.

"What the fuck man?," Donnie cried out. Neegan walked him a few feet away, trying not to look at his large throbbing erection that was hanging out of his pants.

"Go take a fucking walk," Neegan told the man, giving him a hard shove towards the cover of the woods. He was seriously thinking about throwing that pervert out of the car on the way home. But he did have his usefullness. Like what had just happened. None of them thought that Neegan had been bluffing. He could see the fear in their eyes now, and he liked that.

He walked back over and gestured to Tara. She moved quickly, like she had just been waiting for his signal. Picking the boy up, she stood him on his feet and pulled his pants back up, fixing his belt so they wouldn't fall back down. Then she sat the boy down so he could lean against the tire of the truck. Tara wanted to untie his hands, but then thought better of it. Her stomach was churning and she felt like she was going to be sick. She had done a lot of shit since the end of the world. But standing by silently and watching that boy almost get raped was going to stick with her. She was wishing she had stayed behind at Hilltop with Harlan when he asked her to, and not for the first time.

"So we have a deal now," Neegan boomed. He looked at the people on their knees in front of him, waiting for each one of them to nod. "Now we only have the issue of my murdered men to deal with," he said. Tara's felt her hair swish against the side of her face as she turned to look at him. Then she quickly turned away. Neegan would not tolerate anyone questioning his authority, especially in front of these people.

"I'm feeling fucking generous today, so instead of killing three of you, I will only kill one." He let that sink in. They were really looking afraid now. No more bullshit. "Y'all want to decide who its going to be?" He watched them look back and forth at each other, eyes wide with terror. Sometimes a group would turn on each other quickly, but he had a feeling these people wouldn't.

"Tara!," Neegan called out, "you want to pick one?" Tara shrugged, forcing herself to act casual. That's how she had made it this long. Knowing what Neegan wanted without being told.

"They are all the same to me," she said. Neegan walked down the line, looking at each one of them like he was studying them.

"Guess I will have to choose then..." he said. He looked like he was reading a dinner menu, trying to figure out what he wanted to eat. He couldn't kill the leader. That was the one that he had made the deal with. And he didn't really want to kill Beth's sister, she was technically family. He wasn't going to kill the boy. So that left the two black women and the asian man. He motioned to Tara.

"Take Beth's sister over there and set her next to the boy," Neegan told her. Tara moved, taking Maggie by the arm and pulling her over to sit her next to Carl. Then Neegan looked at the three people in front of him. He held up one finger, pointing to Michonne first.

"Eenie meenie miney mo, catch a tiger by his toe, if he hollers, let him go, eenie meenie miney mo." His finger landed on the same person he started with. The black woman with the sword. He could have cut the tension in the air with a knife. Everyone was looking at him, waiting to see what he was going to do. As soon as his finger landed and the rhyme ended, he lifted his bat high in the air and brought it down hard on the woman's head. Her people were screaming, and he heard the high pitched squeaking wails of the boy next to the car. The woman fell forward, blood spilling from the top of her head.

Neegan lifted his bat, smashing it down on her again. And again. And again. Until her head was nothing but a flat pile of mush and brains and hair and blood. So much blood. He lifted his bat up, flinging blood across the woman next to her. Then he lifted his boot and stomped down on what was left of the woman's face. The boy was screaming, trying to get to the woman, and Beth's sister was holding him back with her legs wrapped around him.

"Now we are even," Neegan declared. And he meant what he said, he was getting ready to cut these people loose and leave. He had made his point. Killing them all would serve no purpose now. But then Rick started up again.

"I am going to kill you!," Rick screamed at him. "I will cut your arms off and beat you to death with them!" Neegan could not believe his ears. Didn't this asshole ever learn? Neegan would beat everyone here to death if the man continued to test him. Neegan grabbed Rick by the arm, hauling him up onto his feet and throwing him against the truck. He shoved him down and smashed his face into the bed of the truck so he was bent over the down tailgate.

"Go ahead and do it then!," Neegan hollered at the man. He grabbed Rick by the hair, smashing his face against the bed of the truck over and over until he saw blood. Rick could feel the press of the big man's body behind him. "You are my fucking bitch, you understand me!," Neegan yelled at him. Rick spit the blood out that was pooling up inside his mouth. Somewhere that sounded far away, he could hear Carl screaming and Maggie crying.

"I will rape you myself right here in front of your people, you want that?," Neegan asked him. Rick shook him head, blood flinging out of it like dog slobber.

"No," he mumbled through his spilt and swollen lips.

"We have an understanding then?," Neegan asked him, thinking about how much easier it was to deal with Greg. Greg understood immediately that Neegan was not to be toyed with. Rick nodded his head.

"Yes." Neegan pulled his head back by the hair.

"Never caught your name fucker, what is it?"

"Rick." Neegan stood him up and turned him so they were facing each other. Neegan was so much taller, RIck had to crane his head back to look the man in the eyes.

"My name is Neegan, and I'll be seeing you around." With that Neegan punched Rick so hard in the gut that he almost puked. He fell forward onto the hard ground. Then Neegan waved his arm around in a circle above his head, giving the signal that it was time to leave. Everyone started heading down the road, back to their trucks and cars. But Neegan swooped down and took hold of Maggie, lifting her up by the arm and dragging her along with him. The asian man started freaking out, yelling and trying to get to his feet. Neegan kicked him backwards with his boot as he walked by, knocking the man down into the shallow ditch on the side of the road. He kept going, dragging Maggie along until he was sure they were out of earshot from her companions. Then he stopped and let go of her arm. Going around behind her, he got a small knife out of his belt and cut the tape loose that was binding her wrists together.

"I will take you to your sister," he offered. Maggie peeled at the tape clinging to her wrists and looked at him, trying to figure out what the hell was going on. She wanted to see Beth more than anything in the world, but there was no way she was going anywhere with this lunatic. He backed away from her slightly, giving her more personal space.

"No one there will touch you. You have my fucking word. I know Beth wants to see you." Bringing back Beth's sister would be a nice treat for the girl. Maybe it would help to get rid of the sad faces she was making whenever she didn't think he was looking. And Beth's sister was hot. Attractive women were always welcome at his camp. Maggie looked afraid and ready to bolt. "Can say no if ya don't want to go, ain't going to hurt you." The big man looked sincere. Maggie almost wanted to believe him, even after the things he had just done right in front of her. She shook her head.

"No." He nodded like he excepted her response. Then he handed her the small knife that he used to cut her free.

"The offer is always open," he said. Then he turned and headed off after his men. Maggie watched him go, feeling like it was Beth that was walking away from her, getting smaller as she went. Then Maggie ran back to her friends and started cutting them free from the tape that held them.

Daryl walked and walked. The spot where that man had bitten him rubbed against the material of his pants and started to burn. But he just kept going. Heading for the only home he had. Because home was wherever Beth was. But walking alone gave him time to think. First he thought about what he was going to do when he got back. Which was more complicated than it seemed. Then he thought about his old group from the prison. As strange as it seemed, he had not thought about Rick and the others in a long time. He had pushed those memories down deep into the place where he kept the memories of his brother's death.

And he was alone, so he let himself think about Beth. Even only in his mind, it wasn't safe to go there back at the compound. He might let himself look at her too long. Or get other ideas. He only had one half of his face left and while it wasn't much, he did like it the way it was. Unburnt. One idea kept creeping into the back of his mind. He pushed it away over and over, but it wouldn't stop coming. It was like the tide, washing over him again and again. They stayed with Neegan's group because it wasn't safe to be alone. Last time they had been alone, terrible things had happened to Beth. But what if they could leave and not be alone. What if they could go back to their old group.

Daryl shook the idea out of his head. But it was too late. He already had the image in his mind. Beth in his arms, sleeping in his bed all night. Her soft hair spread out across his pillow. No more sneaking around. He shook his head again. If he left with her, Neegan would come for them. For Beth. Daryl would not put her in that kind of danger. And for that matter, that was a lot to ask of Rick. He couldn't expect the man to put the safety of his people on the line for him. Not after what he had just done to them. There was just no point in that line of thinking.

Daryl sighed when he saw the roof of the factory looming up ahead of him above the trees. He couldn't decide if he was relieved to be back or if he dreaded going inside. Really, he felt a little bit of both. That's when he heard the branch snap behind him.

Carol had followed Daryl all the way from Alexandria. First, because she couldn't bear to let him out of her sight. And secondly, because she wanted to know where his camp was. That would help if Alexandria was going to war with these people. And war seemed likely. She knew the warning signs by now.

She almost lost him a few times, staying far enough back that he wouldn't know she was there. But after a while she could tell the man was lost in thought, and she followed him with less caution. He got to the edge of the woods, a huge brick building looming up ahead of them. She waited a moment and then went after him. Every time he disapeared from view, she felt the panic flutter in her stomach. But she forced herself to move slowly. Now that she knew where his camp was, she should really turn back. But that would mean going back alone. And she wasn't sure she could bear it.

Carol walked quietly, staying close to the tree line, trying to spot where Daryl went. Then she felt herself grabbed up hard by the arm.

"Lookin' for someone?," Daryl growled. She stuttered.

"For you, I wanted to talk to you," she said. He shook her, yanking her hard by the arm.

"More like you wanted to find out where my camp was so you could run back and tell Rick," Daryl said. She went for her gun then, but he was too fast. He snatched it from her holster and then he took her knife too. Carol thought he might kill her right then, but instead he dragged her along with him. She could hear and smell the dead before she saw them. Hundreds of them, maybe thousands. All strung up on stakes and chains. Rows and rows of them, all lined up around the place like some kind of medieval castle moat filled with giant crocodiles. No one was ever getting through there alive. Her eyes went wide with fear, she was more afraid than she had been in a long time.

Daryl dragged her along, closer to the walkers than she would have liked and then down a narrow driveway that was lined with them. There was scarcely enough room for one vehicle to pass without the fingers of the dead grazing the side of it. Daryl spoke to her while they walked, almost like he was enjoying the frightened look on her face.

"Welcome to the sanctuary."


	18. Chapter 18

Day 169

He was stuffing the last bottle of medication into his bag when he heard the first shot. The noise brought his head up, the muscles of his body tense, waiting to see if there was going to be another shot. Silent weapons were always used first. Guns were only used if there was no other choice. And they were always the signal that it was time to go. Daryl yanked the zipper shut and slung the bag onto his back. Then he pulled the string on his crossbow back and put a bolt in, getting ready for what was sure to be waiting for them outside the store.

The other guy that was inside the pharmacy with him was fumbling, trying to shove the rest of what he had into his bag and dropping most of on the floor, then scrambling to try and pick it up. He was young, and he was from Hilltop, not really part of their group. Some farmer's son. Daryl had been nervous about him from the start. The kid had been just a little too eager to voluteer to go on the run with them. Maybe he was looking for some adventure, or maybe he thought he had something to prove. Either way, bringing him had been a bad idea. He had been ready to piss his pants as soon as the first roamer got close to him. And he was loud.

"Leave the rest, time to go," Daryl told him. The kid dropped the bag again, cardboard boxes of medication spilling onto the floor. Daryl cursed. He darted over, shoving as much of it back into the bag as he could, then zipping the bag and shoving it forcefully into the young man's arms. "Time to go," Daryl told him. The kid had a baseball cap on. The brim of it was tattered, with a scrap of cloth hanging off the side. He was trembling so hard that the scrap of cloth was shaking. He slid one strap of his pack onto his shoulder and got his gun out. His hands were shaking so badly that there was no way he was going to be able to hit anything that he was aiming for. And Daryl was worried he might shoot him by accident. Daryl grabbed the boy by the shirt.

"Get it the fuck together," Daryl yelled at him, "its just roamers out there." The kid nodded, but he didn't look so sure. Daryl headed for the door, with the kid too close behind him.

There were dead everywhere. Neegan was beating the ones that got too close in the head with his bat. And Tara was using her baton the same way. Mike, John and Carson were up on the truck shooting at them with rifles.

"Come on man," Carson yelled, gesturing to Daryl and the kid, "run for the truck we will cover you." Daryl nodded to him. He got the closest one with his crossbow, then pulled his knife out. The roamers around him started falling, their heads exploding. Daryl started running for the truck, stabbing any dead that his companions missed with their guns. The kid behind him was blabbering on, screaming and crying like a little bitch. But at least he had the sense to stay close to Daryl and not run like a rat and get himself killed. Then he dropped his bag.

He darted back to get it and the roamers started to close in on him. He fired his gun at one, missing it. The thing grabbed ahold of him and he started to scream, immediately bringing on the attention of all the other walkers in the area. Daryl hesistated, then darted back to help the boy. He stabbed the roamer that had ahold of him, dropping it.

"Get your knife out," Daryl growled at the kid. Then he turned and started slashing at the walkers that were closing in on him. He didn't want to trust the kid to get his back, but he had no other choice. Neegan and Tara were coming his way, clearing a path back to the truck. When they got close, the kid ditched. He ran, darting under the reaching arms of a walker and letting it head straight for Daryl's back. Darting between Neegan and Tara, he ran for the truck and then climbed inside the cab, locking the doors.

"Get your fucking pussy ass back here," Neegan screamed at the kid. Then he bashed in the head of the roamer that was grasping at Daryl's hair over the crossbow slung across the top of the pack on his back. Tara smashed the face of another on in that was getting too close. Between the three of them, they cleared a path back to the truck. Carson and Mike yanked Daryl and Tara into the bed of the truck and Neegan was yanking at the driver's side door on the truck.

"Open the fucking door," he shouted at the kid. The kid was backed up against the passenger side window, shaking his head. "The goddamn keys are in there, unlock the fucking door!" The kid made no move to open anything. "OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR!" Neegan was screaming, Mike and Carson were shooting at the walkers that were closing in on him. Tara and Daryl were pounding on the cab of the truck screaming for the kid to open the doors up.

Neegan stepped back. First he slammed his bat into the knees of a waker that was getting too close. Then he stomped it's head in with his boot. He swung his bat back and smashed in the window of the truck. Unlocking the door, he swung it open and climbed inside the cab. Twisting at the key viciously, he fired up the engine. Daryl sat down quick, gripping the side of the truck. He saw that everyone else in the back did the same. They knew Neegan was going to slam the gas and no one wanted to fall out of the back of the truck into the herd of roamers.

Once they were clear of the herd, Neegan slowed down. He turned to look at the kid that had nearly cost all of them their lives. Then he balled up his fist and punched him in the face.

They pulled through the gates, driving the truck down the main strip of the town. Neegan did not stop, he kept going, heading back to the houses where his people lived. Once he saw where they were going, the kid yanked at the door handle. He was going to try and jump out of the moving truck and run home. But it was still locked from when he had locked himself inside earlier. Neegan snatched hold of him by the arm.

"Where the fuck do you think you are going?," he asked.

"N..N...Nowhere," the boy stuttered. He was shaking with fear again, and if he hadn't already pissed his pants earlier, he probably would have let go again.

Neegan pulled around into the backyard of one of the houses he and his people were living in. Once they stopped, the boy yanked at the truck door again. He pulled the lock up and shoved the door open, his shirt ripping where Neegan was holding it. Tara leaped down from the back of the truck and tripped him, sending him flying into the grass. Then she knelt on him, twisting his arm behind his back. She wasn't even using much pressure, but the kid was sceaming like she was killing him.

Beth and Ginny were near the firepit, doing laundry. They had some of it soaking, some hanging up, and some on the ironing board, waiting to be straightened. Beth took in the broken window on the truck and Daryl's ripped clothing. She felt her heart beating hard in her chest. Neegan climbed out of the truck and she saw he had blood all over the legs of his pants.

"What happened?," she asked, running over to him. Neegan pointed at the boy.

"Chicken shit fucker ran off and almost got Daryl bit, and then he locked me out of the fucking truck," Neegan informed her. He gestured for Ginny to come closer. "You girls get up on the porch," he told them, giving Ginny a little shove in that direction. Beth quickly followed her. They climbed up and stood behind the rail, holding onto each other.

"What are they going to do to him?," Ginny whispered.

"I don't know," Beth said. If that guy did what Neegan said he did, then whatever he got, he deserved. Never leave a man behind. That was one of the rules. And it was a good one. It had kept them strong when they were on the road, helped them to trust each other. No one had ever broken it before. People had gotten separated a few times, and had to go back to retreive someone, but no one had ever just ran and left their partner.

There was a lot of yelling. And by now, quite a crowd of Neegan's people had gathered around. Most were yelling out what they thought should be done to the boy. And the suggestions varied. Throw him to a walker. Beat him to death. Beat his ass. Beth thought it was most likely that he might just end up being crushed by the angry mob that was forming. But Neegan shouted out, his voice booming above the commotion.

"Shut the fuck up and back off!," he yelled. People did as he said. Well they backed off anyway, most of them were still talking and hollering things at the boy. "Stand him up," Neegan told Carson and Tara. Neegan looked at the boy. He was about Mike's age. Not really a boy. But he didn't have any facial hair, and he was acting childish, making him seem younger than he was. He was old enough to be accountable for his behavior, that was for sure. Even his girls wouldn't have run from a fight like that.

Neegan didn't want to kill the boy. But he did want to teach him a lesson. Really it was a lesson for everyone on what happened to people who broke the rules. But he wasn't sure how to do it. Then he saw it. The clothes iron the girls had sitting next to the fire, so it could get hot.

"Hold him down by the fire," Neegan said. The kid was blubbering now, crying and begging. Tara let go and Carson hauled him over by the fire. Then he kicked his knees out and forced him down onto the ground.

"You broke the rules," Neegan told the boy. "You are a coward. A fucking shame. Going to have to mark you so everyone knows." Then he plucked up a small towel and used it to grab the iron without burning his hand. He stepped on the boy's hair, holding him in place. Then he brought the hot iron down on the side of his face.

Ginny turned away, burying her face in Beth's hair. But Beth watched. It was like a car wreck. She couldn't look away. And for a moment, it was her under that iron. The smell of flesh and burning hair filling her nostrils with choking smoke. She scanned the crowd for Daryl. When she saw him, their eyes locked. And then he was walking towards her. Opening the door of the house and shoving her and Ginny inside.

"Don't need to see that," he mumbled. His hand was on her lower back, guiding her inside. And before the door closed she reached back, grasping his hand with hers and squeezing it. He squeezed back, the diamond on her ring digging into her hand. It wasn't much, but it made her feel safe.

"Stay inside, there's going to be trouble with that boy's family when they see him," Daryl warned the girls. Then the door shut and he was gone. Beth peeked out the window, watching the sway of his hips as he hurried down the steps, her hand a flat plane against the hard wood of the door. Ginny squeezed in next to her, wanting to see what was going to happen next.

The boy was sitting up, screaming and crying from the pain. He was lucky the iron was only near the fire and not in it. The girls had only been getting it warm enough to iron clothes, not hot enough to burn them. His skin was burned, but it would heal. Neegan grabbed the bag the boy had taken from the pharmacy. He dumped it out. Then rifled throught the contents. A few choice items were thrown back inside the bag and then it was tossed into the boy's lap. Pain pills and burn cream.

"You are going to need that," Neegan told him. Then he kicked at the boy. "Now get the fuck out of here," he said. If that wasn't enough motivation to get the boy on his feet, the loud jeers of the crowd really got him moving. He scrambled to his hands and knees, then up onto his feet. Then he ran. Daryl was back down on the lawn.

"Going to be trouble with his family," Daryl mentioned. He wasn't telling Neegan what to do. Just stating the obvious. Neegan nodded.

"Everybody gear up. If these chicken shit farmers want trouble, we are going to fucking give it to them!"


	19. Chapter 19

Day 170

Beth felt the tension in the air. Everyone had a loaded weapon. Even her. And Beth had not bothered to carry a gun since they had started living at Hilltop. Neegan sat out on the porch all night, different members of the group taking turns joining him. They waited for the mob of angry farmers with pitchforks to show up. But no one came.

Late the next morning, Greg came. Alone, and without a gun. He asked Neegan if he would come to a meeting at his house to discuss what he refered to as 'the incident'. Neegan nodded and waved with his gun, signalling Carson and Daryl to come with him. Beth and Lauren were watching from the upstairs window when Beth felt the other girl catch hold of her hand and start to pull.

"Where are we going," Beth asked.

"Let's follow them, I want to hear the meeting," Lauren said. Beth nodded. She knew they ought to stay at the house, but she figured what harm could a little eavesdropping do.

All the men were out near the front porches, keeping watch. So the girls slipped quietly out the back door and ran through the backyards of the nearby houses. Beth knew where Greg's house was from the time she ate dinner there and since they took a shortcut through the yards, the girls got there right when the meeting was starting. Lauren grabbed a wheelbarrow from Greg's backyard. She wheeled it over by the window and Beth helped her turn it upside down so they could stand on it. From there they could hear everything that was going on inside, plus tiptoe up to peep in if they dared.

Beth was gripping the trim on the outside of the window to keep from falling when she felt someone poke her in the lower back. She fumbled, reaching for her gun, dropping it and then nearly falling off the bucket of the wheelbarrow. Harlan caught her.

"What the hell you girls doing out here," he asked quietly so he wouldn't be heard by the people inside. Then he picked Beth's gun up and handed it back to her.

"Eavesdropping," Lauren told him, "what the hell does it look like?" Beth saw his face light up with a smile.

"Got room for one more?," he asked. Beth nodded and grabbed his hand, keeping her other one braced on the window sill. She pulled him up to where he could squeeze in between the two girls. "Some fine gun skills ya had there," he whispered, "good thing I wasn't a roamer or I would have ate ya for dinner." Beth elbowed him.

"Shush up," she said. Not only did she not want to be teased, she was trying to listen to what was going on inside the house. He pinched her and she pinched him back. Then Lauren threatened to smack them both. Beth leaned closer, edging up and sneaking a peek inside.

Greg was on the couch, along with some other people that Beth recognized as leaders of different parts of the Hilltop community. An angry looking older couple was there, who she guessed were the parents of the boy that Neegan had burned. Neegan was sitting in a big easy chair, with Daryl and Carson standing behind him. All three were holding weapons. Beth could tell the other people in the room looked nervous, maybe even scared.

"You burned by son's face," his mother finally said, breaking the awkward silence in the room. Daryl had a few choice opinions he might like to offer about the woman's son, but he kept quiet and let Neegan speak for them.

"Your son almost got me and four of my people killed," Neegan informed the woman, "you are lucky I didn't beat him to fucking death in front of you." His tone was even and calm. The woman gasped, backing away from him and closer to her husband. She grabbed at the man's arm like he was going to protect her. But the man looked about as brave as his chicken shit son. Neegan smiled at them both, running his hands over the bat across his lap.

"Want to do something about it grandpa?," Neegan asked the boys father.

"Hey," Greg interjected, "that's not what we are here for. I want to resolve this peacefully."

"You never should have let people like this come to live here," the mother of the boy said, turning her anger on Greg.

"Listen up bitch," Neegan told the woman, "If it wasn't for people like me, your whole fucking town would have been overrun with fucking roamers by now." The woman turned back to Neegan, like she was thinking about opening her cunt mouth again. If she did, Neegan was not going to argue with her again. He was just going to drag her pussy husband outside and beat the shit out of him in the street. Greg saw the tension building and spoke up quickly.

"He is right Leslie," Greg said. While Neegan's delivery was rude, what he said was true. Hilltop had not had a single walker related death since Neegan and his people came. They didn't have to go out on runs anymore. They didn't have to patrol the walls anymore. People did not get bitten or eaten anymore. And they no longer had to worry about what would happen if an armed group showed up looking for trouble. They had their own army now. Leslie, however, was not going to be quieted so easily. She threw Neegan and the men behind him a look of distaste.

"You are nothing but a group of thugs, and everyone knows what goes on out at that house." She turned to Greg. "They have whores out there, I have seen them."

Beth heard Lauren gasp. "Does she mean us?," Lauren whispered. Beth nodded. She couldn't think of anyone else the woman might be talking about. And now that she thought about it, she had noticed the other women in town gave her strange looks sometimes. She thought maybe it was just because they didn't know her yet.

"If we are whores," Beth whispered back, "maybe we should start charging." Harlan covered his mouth to keep from laughing.

"No joke," Lauren said back, "next time I want a snickers bar first." The thought of selling herself for a chocolate bar made Beth want to laugh. But the silly banter between the girls was short lived. Beth had only expected Neegan to yell at the woman, maybe insult her some more. But that is not what he did. He said nothing to the woman. Instead he sat in his chair, smiling at her. Then he stretched his arms out, interlocking his fingers and straightening his arms so his knuckles cracked. When he got up, he moved deliberately and with a purpose. Snatching up the woman's husband, Neegan dragged the man towards the door without a word. The woman started screaming, and Greg stood up. He was looking at the other people that had been sitting on the couch with him, hoping one of them might know what to do.

Neegan dragged the man out into the street and threw him down hard on the pavement. He landed hard on his elbow, drawing blood. Neegan waited for the man to scramble up onto his feet before he punched him in his face, knocking his teeth in and dropping him back down onto the ground. Beth climbed down and ran around the side of the house. She made it there in time to see the man in the street on his knees, holding his busted up mouth. His wife was screaming, making a terrible hysterical racket. Neegan kicked the man in the stomach and he lurched forward, spilling the contents of his stomach into the street.

Harlan had seen enough. Beth held her hand over her mouth as her friend charged around her, heading for the big man that no one ever questioned. He got between Neegan and the bleeding farmer.

"Enough Neegan," Harlan said, "you made your point. You don't need to kill him." Harlan was holding his hands up in the air. Carson was edging in closer, looking scared and confused, not sure who he should be backing up now that it was his brother and his friend staring each other down in the middle of the street. Daryl held his crossbow up, pointing it at Greg and the people on the porch before they got any ideas about interfering. Beth doubted anyone else could tell, but she knew Daryl better than they did. And he was scared. His hair flew as he whipped his head back and forth, trying to watch the people on the porch and see what was happening on the street behind him.

Beth could feel the electricity in the air. It was like time slowed down as she was watching it happen, powerless to stop any of it. Neegan pulled his fist back and plowed it into Harlan's face. Beth heard someone screaming and realized it was her. Harlan's face snapped to the side, blood flying out of the corner of his mouth and spalshing across the front of his brother's demin jacket. He fell to the ground and Neegan pulled his leg back to kick him. Carson had his gun raised, pointing it at Neegan. But Neegan's attention was on the man on the ground in front of him. Without thinking first, Beth ran, feeling the wet grass sliding under her feet as she went. She spun around Neegan, throwing herself on top of Harlan and protecting as much of him as she could with her much smaller body. Somewhere close by she heard Daryl yelling her name.

Neegan was too far into the kick to stop it when he saw her. She had throw herself right between Harlan and the toe of Neegan's heavy boot. It rammed into the side of her with a huff. She flew sideways off the top of Harlan, landing in the street and holding the side of her body as she cried out in pain. She heard a loud knocking noise, which somewhere in her mind she registered as Neegan's bat being dropped and bouncing off the concrete.

He rushed to her side. All the anger drained from his face, leaving him pale white. The woman on the porch was still yelling, and now she was yelling about Neegan kicking Beth.

"You just got done calling her a whore, so shut the fuck up," Daryl yelled at the woman. If she had just shut her damn mouth in the first place, none of this would have happened. Daryl swung his bow up onto his back and darted over to where Beth was lying on the ground, holding her side. She was concious and talking, so chances where she wasn't hurt too badly.

Daryl knelt down, turning her head and checking her eyes. Then he peeled up her shirt to take a look at the large red spot that was already getting darker in the middle. He sucked in his breath. She did not look good. Harlan pulled himself up onto his knees, shoving at Neegan to make him move.

"She might have broken ribs," Harlan said.

"Can you fix her?," Neegan asked him. Harlan looked over at him, his distaste and anger for the man plain on his face. He would help Beth, because Beth was his friend. But first he wanted something else. Greg had already let him know that he was welcome to stay as long a he liked in Hilltop. They were making plans to set up a real doctor's office for him. He knew Neegan wasn't going to stay in this town forever. They had not even been here that long and the big man had already worn out his welcome. And when he left, Harlan did not want to leave with him. Harlan was sick of the way they lived, travelling with a pack of thugs and robbing people to survive. He was already feeling that way before Neegan attacked him, and now his mind was made up.

"I will help her," Harlan said, "but then I am out, you fucking hear me Neegan? I am done with you." Harlan wiped at the blood that was collecting at the corner of his mouth. He wanted Neegan's word before he did anything to help the girl. Neegan looked from him to Beth and then nodded. That was enough for Harlan. He knelt down and started checking Beth's ribs.


	20. Chapter 20

Day 356

There was a morning chill in the air. She crossed her arms across her breasts, hugging herself to try to keep warm in the thin shirt she was wearing. Her legs prickled up with gooseflesh under the short demin skirt she was wearing, but she didn't want to start moving around. No one noticed her, standing still and leaning against the brick wall in the corner of the courtyard. And that was the way she liked it. This was one of her favorite spots. From here, Beth could see everything that was going on without attracting attention.

She had been standing in the same spot the day before when Daryl came in with a hostage. And not just any hostage. Someone she used to know. Beth knew better than to ask any questions. No one would tell her where they were keeping the woman or why. She needed to wait and catch Daryl alone. He would tell her what was going on, whether he liked it or not.

Rubbing at her arms with her hands, she used the friction to try and warm herself. She missed Georgia. This time of year it would still be warm there, even at night. Then she saw him. Daryl. He walked throught the courtyard and headed down into the other side of the factory. Beth had only been there once. When she was being held against her will after Neegan caught her with Daryl. The thought of going back down there scared her. But that must be where Carol was being kept.

Beth waited until he was back inside the building before she crept after him. She felt the hair in the back of her neck stand up and she looked around to make sure no one was watching her. Then she darted inside the door that led down into the lower level of the building. She was wearing a soft pair of fluffy slippers and they made soft little swish noises as she walked. So she got up on her tiptoes. The chair where the guard sometimes sat was empty and she closed her eyes for a moment, thanking god for small favors.

Down the hall she heard a door click shut and she hurried to follow the noise. Leaning close to each door, she listened for voices. When she found what she was listening for, she pressed her ear against the hard wood of the door. Inside she could hear Daryl talking to a woman. The conversation was short. She was asking him to let her go and he was telling her she no. Beth knew they would never let her go. She knew where their camp was, she was lucky to still be alive.

Daryl's voice got closer to the door. Beth moved back, slinking quickly down the hall, she ducked into a empty room. Forget asking him questions, she meant to wait and let him go by so she could sneak down and talk to Carol. Get the information straight from the hore's mouth. But when Daryl passed by the open doorway she found herself reaching out to grab his hand. It was the first time she had touched him since the day Neegan burned his face. He jerked away, arm pulling back to punch whoever had surprised him.

"No," Beth gasped, backing up and putting her hands up to ward off a potential blow, "its just me." He put his hand down. Then he turned, looking up and down the hall to make sure no one was there that might see them together. He shoved Beth through the doorway she was standing in and shut the door behind them. He had not turned on the light before they went in and the darkness inside the small room was oppressive. Beth couldn't even see her own hand in front of her face.

"What are you doin' down here?," he asked her. His tone said the rest. You shouldn't be down here. Alone with me. You are going to get us both killed. Through the blackness, she followed his voice, wrapping her arms around him. Her head resting against his chest. She could feel the tears spilling down her face before she even knew she was crying.

"I saw you come in with her yesterday," Beth said, her breath hitching in gasps, "Is that really Carol? Where did you find her? Is the rest of the group still alive? Maggie?" Daryl put his arms around her, one softly rubbing her back.

"That's a lotta questions," he told her. "They are all still alive, well mosta them anyway. Together, staying at another camp not to far from here." He knew as soon as the truth was out of his mouth that he should have lied to her. Beth's arms tightened around him. This was it. Their chance. They should leave now. Go back to their family. Get away from this terrible place. She got up on the tips of her toes, finding his mouth with hers in the dark. The feel of his lips on hers was like food to a starving person.

"This is our chance," she told him once she pulled her mouth away, "let's leave now, before anyone else figures out what's going on." She put one hand on the back of his neck, pulling his head down to kiss him again. Her other hand moved around to press against his groin. He moaned into her mouth. Then he wrapped his arms around her, crushing her against his chest.

"We can't," Daryl told her, "Neegan already knows where their camp is." Beth was shaking her head. She had a moment of real hope. Having it ripped away that quickly might be enough to really break her this time. "We would be putting everyone in danger if we left and went there," Daryl said. He wasn't just trying to convince her, he was trying hard to convince himself. The urge to take her and leave was almost overpowering. She was weeping hard now, her breath coming out in hard little sobs.

"I don't care," she cried, "I can't stay here anymore." She felt the panic rise up inside her. One more day of smiling and pretending was more than she could take. She felt like a caged animal. Then his mouth was on hers, his lips hard and demanding. She parted her lips, drawing his tounge into her mouth. He tasted like heaven and the salt from her tears.

If there had been a point where they could have stopped themselves, they were past it now. Teeth clashing as they fumbled blindly in the dark room, they pulled and ripped at the clothes that were between them. Her shirt was pulled down, baring the hard pink tips of her breats, and her skirt was pushed up. She shoved her panties down and kicked them off along with her slippers, hearing the clink of Daryl's belt and then the soft rustle of his pants as he pushed them down. Her arms went around his neck as his hands went under her legs. He lifted her into the air and bracing her against the wall with his body as he pushed inside her.

No matter how tight he held her, it was never tight enough. Not even when his fingers dug into her hips, leaving red marks that would turn to bruises later on her pale tender flesh. She twined her fingers into his hair, kissing him until she had to pull back and gasp for air. He buried his face into her neck then, and she could feel the rough skin on the side of his face where Neegan burned him. It brought a fresh wave of tears to her eyes. They spilled down her face as she found her release, her tight walls contracting around him. And then he was coming with her, spilling himself deep inside her before he could stop himself. He yanked out of her, making her gasp and almost dropping her onto the floor, but it was too late. The damage was done.

"Shit," he swore, "sorry."

"Doesn't matter now," she said, "I haven't had my period since the last time anyway." This comment was met by a deafening silence in the room. A pregnant pause, Beth thought. She was on the verge of hysterical laughter now. Daryl set her down gently, gathering her into his arms.

"Why didn't you tell me before now," he whispered. It wasn't really a question. He could guess why she hadn't told him. First, they had not been alone together until now. And second, he knew she didn't want to burden him with more than he was already dealing with.

"Are you sure it's mine?," he asked. His tone was gentle. She knew he was only asking, not accusing.

"Neegan, he...," she paused, not wanting to give Daryl the mental image of the details of her sex life with another man. "He's careful," she finally said, hoping that was enough of an explanation, "He will know it's not his."

"Fuck," Daryl swore again. They needed to get out of this place now. He didn't even want to image what would happen if Neegan figured out that Beth was preganant with another man's baby. At the very least, he would make her get rid of it.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered. Since she had figured out what was going on, she had been seriously considering slitting her wrists, like she had back at the farm after her mother died. This was all her fault. Daryl could hear the desperation in her voice before, and now he understood why.

"We have a little time," Daryl said, "just hang on and let me figure something out." He held her tight in his arms one more time. "Okay?." he asked. Beth nodded and then remembered he couldn't see her in the dark.

"Okay." He cracked the door open silently, so a tiny sliver of light came in from the hall. Beth used it to grope for her panties, pulling them back on and then sliding her feet into her slippers. She straightened her clothes out and smoothed her hair down. Before he slid out the door, she grabbed his hand, wanting to touch him one more time.

"I love you," she told him, "be careful." He squeezed her hand. She knew by now he wouldn't say it back. Not because he didn't love her, but because it hurt too much to say the words.

"Stay down here until you know I am long gone," he said. If anyone thought they were down here together, they would run right to Neegan with the information, hoping to earn his favor. Beth nodded. And just like that, Daryl was gone. He closed the door behind him, leaving her listening to her the sound of her own ragged breathing in the dark.

Beth counted to a hundred a few times. Then she eased the door open. No one was in the hall, but she had that funny feeling again. Like she was being watched. She turned and started walking towards the courtyard, knowing she needed to get somewhere and wash Daryl's smell off her as fast as possible. But then she stopped. She spun back around, staring at the door where she knew Carol was being held.

Beth thought about what happened to her, down here in one of these holding rooms. She was scared for Carol, who didn't even have people's fear of Neegan to protect her. And Beth was fucking sick and tired of feeling powerless. She might not be able to help herself. But she could help Carol. Beth didn't let herself overthink what might happen to her if she got caught. Instead she moved quickly. She tapped on the door softly.

"Carol?," she asked.

"Who's there?," a soft voice said, drifting through the thick wood of the door.

"Its Beth," Beth said, "don't be scared." Beth slid the lock open and flipped the other one on the doorknob. Then she eased the door open. Carol was on her feet, her eyes open in shock and filled with emotion. Beth ran for her, their arms wrapping around each other.

"I can't believe it's you." Carol said. She pulled back, taking in the younger woman's appearance. Beth's face was scarred on one side. A long deep angry red mark that edged dangerously close to the corner of her eye. She was dressed in very revealing clothing, a shirt skirt and a tight top that showed a bit of midriff. Her hair was in two loose pigtail braids that hung forward over her shoulders. The hopeful innocent light in her eyes was still there, but it was accompanied by a new edge of determination. She was not the same girl she had been the last time Carol saw her. Carol did not want to image what the girl might have had to do to survive. Or why she was dressed in such a way, living with a camp where so far Carol had only seen men.

"We don't have much time," Beth said. "If you are quiet and quick, you can get out now before anyone notices you." Carol nodded. "In the middle of the courtyard, there's a fire pit where people like to cook. There are usually some knives and things laying around. Then go straight for the gates. Then run." Carol nodded again.

"Come with me," she told Beth. Beth shook her head. The thought was tempting, but she couldn't leave without Daryl.

"Tell Maggie I love her," Beth said. Then she hugged the other woman one more time.

"I will," Carol said. Then she slipped out the doorway and took off down the hall. She had kept her eyes peeled when Daryl brought her in. So she knew which way was out. Beth watched her disappear around the corner. Then she shut the door and stood there in the hall, trying to think of how she was going to explain what just happened. Maybe she could smack at the door with something hard, make it look like Carol just escaped on her own. Beth went down the hall, peeking into rooms, looking for something she could use to mess up the door. She ran smack into Crystal.

Beth gasped. Backing up, her eyes wide with shock. How long had Crystal been down there watching her? Had she heard her and Daryl, or only seen her let Carol go? Crystal lit up a smoke, tossing the match on the floor and stomping on it with her little high heel shoe. She smiled as she took a long drag off the smoke and blew it in Beth's direction.

"Be careful," Crystal said, "smoke is so bad for the baby." Then Beth knew. Crystal had heard it all. She knew about her and Daryl.

"I saw you sneaking down here after your stupid cripsy critter boyfriend, but I had no idea you were going to fuck him, and then you let that woman go..." Crystal clapped her hands, the cigarette dangling from her lip. "I wonder what Neegan is going to think about all this," she added. "Before he kills Daryl, I hope he makes him watch while he punches your stomach until he kills the disgusting little bastard growing inside your belly. And for letting that woman go, who knows what he will do about that..." Crystal took another drag off her smoke, really enjoying the moment. After Neegan caught Beth with Daryl the last time, she had hoped his infatuation with the dumb bitch would be over. Crystal never understood what he saw in Beth in the first place. She was nothing but a skinny little prude. And today she was finally going to get what she deserved.

Beth stood there, watching Crystal smoke. She felt rooted to the spot for the moment, shocked by the other girl's words. She knew Crystal didn't like her, mostly because Neegan favored her. But she had no idea the girl hated her this much. She had a feeling she knew now who had been responsible for getting her and Daryl caught the last time they had been together. And the nasty words Crystal had said about the small tiny spark of life growing inside her. Beth felt the anger start to well up inside her. She knew Crystal didn't like her, but what kind of foul distasteful person would wish bad things upon an unborn child. For the first time she felt the mother in her rise up, feircely protective of the tiny being that was part of her and the man she loved.

Beth didn't answer the girl back. She didn't beg Crystal not to tell, like she guessed the girl was hoping. Instead she launched at her. Clawing at her, Beth grabbed the smoke from her mouth and turned it on the girl, burning her face. Crystal screamed and they fell to the floor, scratching and fighting.

Beth was about the same height as her opponent, but the other girl was much thicker, outweighing her by at least a good twenty pounds. Soon, Crystal was on top on her, hands around Beth's throat as she choked her. Beth scratched at her face, trying to get her to release her grip, but she only held tighter, putting more of her weight into it. Her arm flinging behind her, Beth felt for anything there that might help her. Little black dots were flashing in front of her eyes. If she passed out, she guessed Crystal wouldn't kill her, but she would run up and tell Neegan everything, which was even worse.

Her hand came into contact with something hard, and Beth gripped it. It was one of Crystal's high heel shoes that must have come off when they were rolling around. Beth used the last bit of strength inside her. Gripping the shoe, she swung it hard at the other girls face. There was a gush of blood, followed by a rush of air into her lungs. Beth rolled out from under the other girl, coughing and sputtering for breath. When she got to her knees, she rolled Crystal over. She was dead, the heel of her shoe had gone in through her eye and straight into her brain. _Always told her walking around in those things was going to get her hurt._ Beth took a deep breath, holding in the psycho hysterical laughter that was threatening to bubble up inside her. Beth pulled herself up and looked down at the dead girl in the hall. A new idea was brewing in her mind.

"Thanks bitch," Beth told what used to be Crystal. Now she didn't need to find something to destroy the door with. Instead she ran for the courtyard, screaming for Neegan. He came running out in only his pants, even his feet were bare. Once he got ahold of her, Beth wrapped her arms around his neck, climbing him like a frightened kitten. The blood she was covered in smeared across his chest.

"What the fuck is going on?," he asked. He pulled her back, checking her for injuries.

"Crystal," she said, "she let that woman go. She was going to blame it on me I think. When she knew I saw her she attacked me." She hugged him again, tears coming to her eyes. As soon as she felt his arms go around her, she knew he believed her. Neegan called out, sending a few men down into the holding area to check out what happened. Then he wrapped his arm around Beth and started walking her inside where she could get cleaned up. She kept her eyes down as they walked. But when she saw Daryl's boots, she flicked them up for just a moment, her eyes locking with his. The look on his face told her what she needed to know. He knew. He knew she let Carol go, and he knew she killed Crystal and blamed it on her. Beth looked back down. She was glad he knew. The sooner he started seeing her as a partner, the sooner he would stop seeing her as a liability.

 **** Hallelujah! I know you all were waiting for Daryl and Beth to have sex so I hope you enjoyed it. And that little bitch Crystal got single white femaled right through the head just like she deserved. I don't know about you, but this was my favorite chapter so far in this story. As always read, enjoy and review. ****


	21. Chapter 21

Day 175

The pain in her side spiked through her in a searing flash every time she breathed too deeply. The only position that was bearable for her was to recline back in the big easy chair that one of the guys had dragged up to the room for her. Lauren and Ginny had pulled it front of the widow for her, so at least she had a view. She could look down and watch Daryl. He had not come up to see her, but she could see him. When he wasn't out on a run or clearing the walkers off the walls he sat in his usual place near the firepit.

She wished he would come up and talk to her. Even if it was just to say hello. But it was better this way. If she stayed away from him, she could keep him safe. Beth closed her eyes. She thought about the dream she had that morning. Daryl had been sitting on the side of her bed, stroking her hair back from her face. Then he lifted up her shirt and ran the backs of his knuckles across the multicolored pattern of bruises on her ribs. His hand moved down, resting lightly on her hip. The tip of his finger tucked just under the lace trim on her cotton panties. Leaning down, he had kissed her on the corner of her mouth. The dream had seemed so real, she had rolled onto her back and reached for him. But when her eyes fluttered open, he was gone.

She leaned back in the chair, pulling the blanket on her lap up so it covered her all the way up to her neck. Flexing her feet, she moved her knees up and down, rubbing her thighs together. She felt the wet throbbing between her legs. It was a familiar feeling to her now, and she knew it just meant she was aroused. Despite the fact that she wasn't having relations with the man she wished she was having them with, she had still gotten used to having some kind of sexual release a lot more often than once a week.

Neegan had not laid one finger on her since her ribs got hurt. And to her surprise, Beth found herself missing him a little. Or at least missing what he did to her. She bit at her lip then, watching Daryl out the window and feeling more than just a little guilty. Even if she didn't love Neegan, at least she had someone to warm her bed at night, which was more than Daryl had. She wondered if he ever got lonely. Her hand slid down her stomach, moving to rub herself through the thin damp cotton of her panties. Maybe he thought about her, the same way she was thinking about him.

She thought about the hard muscles of Daryl's chest, the way the tensed up the few times she had run her hand over them. Lower than that, he had been hard. She had felt it against her through the rough fabric of his pants. He had been hard as a rock. She had not seen his dick, but since she knew what one looked now, it was easy to imagine it. Thick and long and hard, maybe with a bit of salty bitter fluid dripping from the tip. She slipped her finger under her panties, wincing a little as she adjusted her body to get in a more comfortable position. Rubbing gently at first, she tried to get a feel for what she was doing.

Back before the turn, she had not had much interest in boys. She had certainly never tried touching herself before. It always made her happy and sad at the same time, thinking about her old self. She had been a real prude, that was for sure. But she had also been innocent and hopeful. Love had sounded like a fairy tale to her back then.

Beth thought about her dream again. This time when she turned to reach for Daryl, he was there. He kissed down her side and over her hips, breathing hot air onto her through her cotton panties. Then he ripped them off, burying his face between her legs. A small sigh escaped her lips as she slid her finger inside herself. Her opening was warm and slick with fluid, and she found the feel of it aroused her more.

A flood of different images passed through her mind until she found the one that appealed most to her at the moment. Now her finger was the hard length of him. She was riding him, rocking her hips slowly in a circular motion. His hands were on her breasts, his rough thumbs rubbing over her nipples. Maybe instead of lying down, he was sitting up, so she could kiss him. She moved faster, sliding her finger in deeper and harder until she felt her release wash over her. To her shock, it felt just as good as it did when she was having actual sex. Maybe even better since now she could just take a nap and not have to wait for the other person to finish up.

Beth wiped her fingers off on the blanket she was covered up with, a little satisfied smirk on her face. She looked down from the window, spotting Daryl. He was sitting by the firepit, making new bolts for his crossbow. Was it as good for you as it was for me, she thought with a giggle. Then there was a light knock on the bedroom door before it was opened.

"Am I interrupting something?," Harlan asked. He could see Beth's face looked a little flushed. But maybe she was just warm.

"No," she said, flashing him a smile despite the obvious pain she was in, "come in." Harlan took a little orange pill bottle out of his pocket and handed it to her.

"Got you a few more pain pills," he said, "crack them at half and try to take them only at night when you need to sleep." She nodded. Beth wasn't much of a pill popper, she only took the pills if the pain was more than she could stand. Harlan rolled the blanket down and lifted the side of her shirt up, being careful not to expose more of her body than he needed to. He poked gently at her side, making her suck in her breath a few times.

"They are healing up nice," he told her. He paused like he wanted to say something else. "Good thing since you will be leaving soon." Beth looked over at him, her big blue eyes getting bigger.

"Leaving?," she asked. He nodded. Then he shook his head like he didn't want to say anything else. "I can't leave this room," she added, "no one tells me anything. Will you please tell me what's going on?" He looked down, picking at a string on his pants that he suddenly found fascinating. "Harlan," Beth said, "please..." Harlan got up. He checked the hall and then clicked the door shut. Then crouched down next to Beth and took her hand.

"Greg and his people don't want Neegan around here anymore. I heard Greg and Neegan made some kind of deal. I don't know the details. But I know people are saying they are glad he will be gone soon." Beth nodded.

"Thank you," she told Harlan. She guessed if Neegan hadn't told her, it was because he didn't want her to know. "Don't worry, I will play like I don't know anything." Harlan nodded. She could tell he still had something more he was holding back.

"What if you didn't leave with Neegan's group," he asked her. Beth looked confused. "Your dad was a vet. You know more about medicine than anyone else here. I could train you, teach you even more. You could work at my doctor's office with me, like a nurse." Harlan squeezed her hand. Beth took his hand in both of hers and thought about his offer. She knew it came with no strings and only the best of intentions. Harlan was not after her body. The thought of being a nurse was alluring to her. She felt most at home when she was taking care of people. If her dad was here, she knew what he would tell her to do. But her gaze returned to the man outside the window.

"Is anyone else staying?," she asked. When she turned back to Harlan, his big brown eyes were filled with tears. Taking his glasses off, he wiped them on his shirt carefully. They were already half broke from when Neegan punched him. Then he shook his head.

"No. Not even my brother."


	22. Chapter 22

Day 186

She took half of her last pain pill for the ride over, but the motion of the truck over the rough road still made Beth wince and grip the small handle near the top of the door. Her brother Shaun used to call it the 'oh shit' handle. He coined the phrase when he was trying to teach Beth how to drive. They finally pulled up outside an abandoned factory. The place had a fence around it. And that was about the nicest thing she had to say about her new home.

There was a creek nearby, so even though they would have to start boiling drinking water again, at least they wouldn't have to get the water from another location and drive it here. When water was hard to come by, people started getting real ripe real fast. Especially Neegan. He had a general odor of man sweat about him even when he bathed regularly. When he wasn't able to, he smelled about as good as a dirty sock wrapped in five day old baloney. And that was before he took his boots off.

Neegan walked around the truck, opening Beth's door for her and lifting her out with one arm under her legs and the other behind her back. He set her down gently onto the ground and then took her hand. Dragging her around the place, he showed her everything he thought was great about it. Beth made sure to smile and agree with all the things he said, even though she really could care less what the walls were made of as long as they kept the roamers out. Beth finally asked him the question that had been bothering her since they arrived.

"Where are we going to grow food?," she asked. The building seemed secure, but there were tall thick woods all around the place. The fenced in courtyard was cement and didn't have a lot of direct sunlight. When they depleted the surrounding area of supplies, they were going to have to move on. Crystal laughed at her question like it was the dumbest thing she ever heard. Then she tripped over her own feet and bumped into Beth, making her yelp in pain. Crystal apologized like it was an accident, but Beth guessed she had done that shit on purpose. Neegan smacked at the girl's arm.

"Watch what the fuck you are doing," he hissed at her. Beth was finally looking a little better, he didn't need Crystal stumbling into her and hurting her all over again. Then he turned to Beth, giving her a big smile.

"We aren't going to grow food," he told her, "Hilltop is going to feed us. For taking care of their walkers and protecting their camp." Beth nodded. She wondered how happy Hilltop was about that, but she knew better than to ask. Neegan could blow all the smoke up her ass that he pleased, she knew where the fire was.

"That's nice," Beth said. She decided it might be best to change the subject quickly. "Where is my room?," she asked. He was excited to show her that, like she had a feeling he might be. Her room turned out to one large room with several beds. The place was an absolute dump. But at least there were beds. With sheets and blankets and pillows. It could always be worse.

"I saved you the spot next to me," Lauren told her, showing her the bed she had slept in the night before. That actually made her feel good. Beth smiled and thanked the girl. She leaned over and pushed on the mattress, testing it to see how soft it was. No matter what it was going to hurt her to sleep on it. The only place she was comfortable these days was that ratty easy chair back in her old room at Hilltop. There was a loud knock on the door.

"Special delivery!," Mike yelled at her. Then he and Tara came in carrying the chair between them. Beth was so happy it almost brought tears to her eyes. Beth saw Tara flash an evil eye at Crystal and she wondered what was going on between the two of them.

"Where do you want it princess?," Neegan boomed. Beth pointed over by one of the windows and he hurried to snatch the chair up and move it to the spot she had indicated.

"Thank you guys so much," Beth said. She really was more grateful than she could express. Tara hugged her carefully. When she did, she leaned down and spoke quietly into Beth's ear so Neegan wouldn't hear her.

"Bringing the chair was Daryl's idea," she whispered. Then Tara kissed Beth on the cheek and moved back so Mike could swoop in and hug her. Beth felt confused about what Tara had told her. Daryl had not spoken to her in weeks. A hundred questions jumbled over each other in her mind. How did he know that she was only comfortable in that chair? And why would he even care? If the chair was his idea, why didn't he bring it up himself? Neegan was clearly pleased with Mike and Tara for making Beth so happy, he was probably going to make sure they got some sort of reward for this. A reward usually meant alcohol or drugs. The fact that Daryl liked to drink wasn't exactly a secret. So Beth was left wondering.

She climbed carefully into her chair, flipping the footrest up and making herself as comfortable as she could. Neegan took a blanket off one of the beds and shook it out, laying it over her and making a big show of tucking it in around her. Then he bent down to give her a lingering kiss on the mouth.

"Need anything else?," he asked her. Beth remembered the mostly empty plastic pill bottle in her pocket. She pulled it out, shaking it around so he could see there was only half of one pill left. He took the bottle and held it up to look inside before he handed it back to her. He patted her on the head, stroking her like she was a cat. "I'll see what I can find for ya," he said. Then he headed out of the room, leaving the girls alone to explore their new home.

Daryl used the sledgehammer to take one more swing at the wooden post, the sweat running down his back in ribbons. Tara gave an expiremental tug on the post. Finding it solidly in place, she let go and flopped down on the grass. Along with a lot of other memebers of the group, they had been working on this fence all week and it felt like they had made very little progress. She pulled her water bottle out and took a long swig. Then she handed it to Daryl who had taken a place on the grass beside her. Daryl looked at how much ground they had left to cover and reminded himself again that the work would be worth the effort if it made them safe from the roamers.

To think of the dead was to bring them stumbling out of the woods. Three of them were ambling along, probably encouraged by the sound of the fence being built. Tara got up and flipped out her baton, taking one of them out at the knees. She grabbed another one by the back of the shirt and dragged it over to the part of the fence they were done with. There were long sharp poles with notches dug out of them, making something like a gaff that would be used for fishing. She shoved the walker backwards onto the pole, and the notches served to keep it from sliding back off.

The idea had come on by accident, when a walker got stuck in the fence they were building, but now it was intentional. The fence would protect them from the walkers, and the walkers hooked onto the fence would protect them from other people. Now when they saw roamers approaching it was kind of exciting. They needed more of them to fill out the fence. It was an unusual feeling to be happy when you saw one coming.

Daryl grabbed the one that was still shuffling around and slammed it down onto another one of the notched poles. Then he and Tara took the third one and did the same with it. Mike came running over to help but got there too late. Instead he swung Tara up into his arms lifting her feet off the ground.

"Stop it I'm so sweaty," she told him, kicking her legs as she struggled to escape his grasp. Daryl laughed at her half hearted efforts. If she really didn't want Mike touching her, he would be on the ground in a coma right now.

"I like you sweaty," Mike told the woman, setting her back down on the ground but not releasing his grip on her. He tipped his head down, kissing her on the mouth, one of his hands moving down from her waist to get a palmfull of her backside. "Go for a walk with me," he said. Tara glanced at Daryl to make sure he didn't mind her taking off on him. He waved them away and watched them take off into together into the woods.

Leaning back against the post he had just put into the ground, Daryl tipped back the canteen, drinking the last of Tara's water. He closed his eyes and pushed all the thoughts of everthing they needed to get done out of his mind. Then the image of Beth floated into his mind and he tried to push it back down even deeper where it belonged. Daryl reminded himself firmly the she had changed her mind about wanting to be with him. He just needed to accept it and move on, but he was finding that forgetting her was easier said than done.

The week before, he had told himself that he was just going in to check on her. Make sure her ribs were healing up. He sat down on the side of her bed. Before he knew what he was doing he had one hand the silky nest of her hair and the other was rubbing her under her clothes. She had rolled towards him, a soft little sigh escaping her lips. And he had streaked out of the room faster than a fucking cheetah. He had gone and beaten off furiously in the bathroom after that, feeling like the biggest pervert on earth. What kind of sick weirdo touched a sleeping girl under her clothes. Not even his brother would do that. Daryl made sure to stay far away from Beth after that. It was the only way to keep her safe.


	23. Chapter 23

Day 362

Carl hid. He hid close enough to hear what was being said and he listened. Then he felt his hand clench into a fist. That big man was the one that killed Michonne. And not only was his dad not killing him on the spot, he was letting the man take whatever he wanted. Deanna had some supplies set aside for Neegan and his henchmen to take. But that wasn't good enough. A muscular black man with glasses had gone into the infirmary and taken all their medication. They needed that medicine for when people got hurt or sick. Even Carl knew that. And now it was gone. And Rick was not doing one damn thing about it.

Carl backed away and his hands and knees. The men at the gates were so busy watching each other that they didn't even notice him when he turned and climbed the wall with Abraham's old gun strapped to his back. He dropped to the ground, moving as quietly as possible. There was a truck with a storage pod attached to the back of it. The pod was open since the men that came to Alexandria with the big man were still loading it. Carl gripped his gun tightly in his hands when he saw the man that had yanked his pants down by the side of the road. He wanted to shoot that man now. Shot him and kill him, then maybe shoot him again. But he knew if he did, he would start a gunfight. More of his friends and family might get killed.

Carl waited until the men walked away to get more boxes. Then he crept inside the pod and hid behind the supplies that were already loaded up. Inside the pod, the air was still and hot. Sweat started to bead up on his forehead and he immediately wished that he had thought to bring a bottle of water with him. Before he could change his mind about stowing away in the sweltering container, the men returned. They shoved a few more boxes inside and slammed the doors shut, latching them from the outside.

Beth watched out the window. She was waiting for the team that had gone on the collection to come back. Daryl was on the run, and she was scared for him. He refused to tell her anything, insisting that the less she knew the safer it was for her. But it wasn't hard to assume that he might try and have a private word with Rick while they were picking up the supplies. Amber came over to the window and looked out over Beth's shoulder.

"I am going for a walk," the girl told Beth. Beth knew she was lying. She was going to see Mark. Beth had already warned her about what would happen if they got caught. But Amber didn't seem to take any of it very seriously. She was still new here. New enough that she had not developed a healthy fear of Neegan yet. Beth thought about warning her again, but she knew Amber wouldn't listen. And not that she wanted to seem selfish, but Beth had enough of her own fucking problems without taking on Amber as another responsibility.

"See you later then," Beth told her. Amber left the room. When the door clicked shut behind her, Lauren spoke up.

"They are going to be back any minute, if she wanted to get her fuck on with Mark, she should have done it earlier. Fucking idiot." Beth nodded. Then she went back to watching out the window. When she saw the first truck come up over the hill, she pressed her hand up against the glass. Then she hurried down into the courtyard.

The trucks pulled down the walker lined driveway one at a time. The one with the storage pod pulled in first and John backed it up near the doors that led inside to the kitchen so it would be easier to unload. Then he walked around the back and opened up the doors on the storage pod. Donnie and several other men headed over to help him. They started to pull boxes out of the pod, setting them on the ground, while the other trucks pulled into the courtyard and parked. Beth got up on her tiptoes, looking for Daryl. When she saw him. she breathed a sigh of relief. Then she ran over, ignoring him and wrapping her arms around Neegan. He grabbed at her backside, lifting her off the ground and sticking his tounge down her throat.

"Bring me anything nice?," she asked, giving him a big smile. Before he could answer, gunshots were ringing out in the courtyard. He shoved Beth inside the truck he had just climbed out of and shut the door. Then she watched him and Daryl run over to the storage pod. For her angle, it looked like someone was inside the pod shooting out. She could see Donnie's dead body lying on the ground, riddled with bullets. And John was crawling away, holding the side of his neck. Blood was gushing out of him in spurts.

Beth pulled at the door handle on the truck. She ran over, rolling John over and trying to put pressure on the wound on the side of his neck. But there was already so much blood. After all these years of living in this world, she knew by now that once the puddle of blood around someone got a certain size, there was no more help for them. He was trying to talk to her, but more blood was just flinging from his mouth. He was gagging and choking on it. Beth took his hand in hers, giving him what comfort she could. Then she took her hand off the wound on his neck. The blood ran out in a river. Once John lay still, she took the knife from his belt and stabbed him, pushing it in through his ear. Making sure he wouldn't come back.

The gunshots stopped. Now there was a lot of yelling. Daryl dragged a teenage boy from the back of the pod and out in front of the truck. The boys hat fell off and rolled over near Beth's knees. She picked the hat up, turning it over in her hands. Then she took another look at the boy. Daryl punched him in the mouth and he flopped to the ground. He was older and taller. But she knew him just the same. She would know Carl anywhere. Daryl let go of him and Neegan was walking towards him with his bat. Beth looked up, her eyes meeting Daryl's. She knew now, he only beat the boy to try and keep Neegan from killing him.

Dropping the hat, Beth tried to get to her feet. But she was slipping and sliding around in the large puddle of blood under her. Finally she got to her hands and feet, half crawling half running towards Carl. She climbed right over him, sitting almost on top of him. Placing herself between him and Neegan's bat.

"What the fuck are you doing?," Neegan hollered at her. She could hear a lot of other people yelling, but it just sounded like a roar in her ears. "Get out of the way Beth!" Beth shook her head. Then she looked up at the big man. Being defiant would get her nowhere. But sometimes begging worked.

"Please don't hurt him," she said. Daryl watched the scene, trying to decide if speaking up would make things worse or better.

"He's Rick's son," Daryl finally said, "we can trade him or hang on to him to make sure Rick don't make no more trouble." Neegan looked at him. Then he looked down at Beth. She was coated in blood, and she had tears in her eyes. He could tell she was going to get very upset if he beat this boy's head in. Neegan would have rather wrangled in Beth's sister, but maybe this boy could still be useful to him if she cared about him as much as she seemed to. Neegan stepped closer. He extended his hand to the boy that was clinging to Beth like a life preserver.

"Come on up then," he told the boy, "going to be here a while so I might as well show you around." Carl looked up, eyed the man with more than a little suspicion. Beth nudged him, nodding for him to do as the man was telling him.

Carl reached up and put his hand in Neegan's much larger one. The man pulled him roughly to his feet and then helped Beth up using a more gentle touch. Carl crossed his arms over his chest and looked at her. She looked the same in the face, except for the scar that ran down from her temple and down the side of her cheek. But other than that he would not have known it was her. She had a small pair of shorts on with a top that barely covered her breasts. Both garments plus her arms and legs were covered in blood that was rapidly drying in the summer heat. Noticing Carl's obvious stare, Beth looked down at herself.

"Maybe I better go get cleaned up a little," she said. Neegan could tell she wanted assurance that nothing was going to happen to the boy before she left. He slung his arm around the boy's shoulders.

"Go ahead, I am just going to give our guest a little tour," Neegan told her. Beth eyed him for a moment, which made him start to feel a little angry. She ought to know better than to question him, especially when people were watching. She stared at him a moment longer, then nodded and took off for the area where they kept water barrels for bathing. Carl watched her go, wiping at the blood on the corner of his mouth with his sleeve. Once Beth was out of sight, Carl expected he might be killed. But the big man seemed sincere about the tour.

Neegan walked Carl around the courtyard, showing him a few things. Some men were dragging the bodies of the men Carl shot out the front gates, leaving a long sloppy trail of blood behind. Once they were gone, people returned to the tasks they had been working on before like nothing ever happened. The behavior of the people in this new camp gave Carl the creeps. Not only did no one seem to have any feelings that a few of their own people had just been murdered, they acted very strangely towards the big man that was taking him on the tour.

Carl had already guessed that Neegan was the leader of this camp, but the people treated him like he was more than that. Deanna and Rick were the leaders of Alexandria. But people there didn't bow their heads to them. And he noticed no one here seemed to question anything the big man said. Neegan also kept his arm around Carl's shoulders, which made the boy uncomfortable. But since it was better than being shot or beaten to death, Carl chose to keep his mouth shut and put up with the unwanted contact. For now.

After his brief tour of the courtyard, Neegan took the boy into the kitchen and offered him some water. Carl took the glass without hesitation, draining down every drop. Neegan refilled it for him. Then he leaned against a large shelf like he was thinking about what he wanted to say to the boy. There was a door next to the shelf, which Carl assumed led to a pantry or storage closet of some sort. As the big man opened his mouth to talk, the sound of breaking glass sounded from the other side of the door.

Neegan turned towards the noise, cocking his head. Then he motioned for Carl to move out of the way and flung the door open. Carl wasn't sure what he was looking at. But then he realized they had interrupted two people that were involved in some sort of sex act. The man, or boy really since Carl guessed he was only a few years older than him at most, has his pants down around his ankles. A pretty girl with short hair that looked about the same age had her arms and legs wrapped around the boy. And he was holding her up, supporting her slight weight against the shelf while he thrust his hips into her in a steady rhythm.

At first, Carl smiled. He had never really seen people having sex before and he thought they looked pretty funny. But then he saw the girl's face distort into a look of complete terror. She stared at the big man and then began shoving at the boy who was pumping into her to make him stop.

Neegan grasped the boy by the collar of the shirt and pulled him backwards away from the girl. When he did, Carl saw that she was completely naked except for a small shirt that was scrunched up around her waist. Neegan threw the boy against the wall. He hit face first and fell back into a shelf of food items before he flopped on the floor. Carl stepped back, a bit of water sloshing out of his glass onto the boy's shirt.

Neegan reached into the closet, grabbing Amber by the arm. She made the unwise decision to try and fight him. Scratching at his arm, she hit him a few times in the chest and once in the stomach. He brought down his hand and slapped her hard across the face. He checked the amount of force he used on her, not wanting to disfigure her permanently. Carl watched the scene with big wide eyes. He had seen fighting, but he had never seen someone slap a naked girl after throttling her boyfriend. Neegan kept hold of her arm and leaned down to grab the boy by the leg, dragging them both in the direction of the courtyard.

Carl stood there, holding his water. The big man seemed to have forgotten about him for the moment. He thought maybe he ought to take the opportunity to try and escape. But then he remembered that he had no idea where he was or how he got here. And no idea which was Alexandria was if he did manage to get out of this place in one piece. There was a lot of noise coming from outside now. Mostly yelling and screaming. Carl had not been told he had to stay in the kitchen, so he followed the noise back outside.

He stepped out into the afternoon sun. The naked girl was being held back by a large black man. The same one that had taken the medication from Alexandria. And the boy was awake now, struggling to get away. He was being held down by a few more men. A lot of people were standing around, more than Carl had thought lived at this place. A lot more. He saw motion out of the corner of his eye. Turning, he saw Beth coming towards him, wrapped in a towel. She crowded in close to him, taking his hand in hers. The boy was really screaming now.

"Should we try to help him?," Carl asked her. Beth shook her head.

"They won't kill him," she said, "and if we try to help, it will only make things worse." Carl nodded. He gripped her hand in both of his, wishing he didn't have to see what was about to happen but feeling powerless to look away. The boy was begging and crying like he knew what was coming. And the naked girl was screaming. She wasn't using words, she was just wailing like a wounded animal. A woman with long black hair and a young black man were backing away from the crowd. Carl saw them turn and head inside the large brick building. The woman looked like she was going to be sick.

Carl watched as two men dragged the boy to his knees. They laid him down across a table, his pants still around his ankles. For a moment, Carl thought the boy was going to be raped. Then the big man took something from the fire. He was using a towel to hold it so Carl couldn't see what it was. But he could see the smoke rising from it. Whatever it was it was hot and made of metal.

"What does he have?," Carl asked quietly.

"A clothes iron," Beth told him. He voice was catching in her throat and she was squeezing Carl's hand so hard it hurt. Carl watched in horror as the iron was brought down on the boy's face and held there until his hair started to burn off. The smell was sickening. The man lifted the iron off and tossed it back near the fire. He ordered some people to take the boy away. Then he grasped the naked screaming girl and slapped her again. This time it was to shut her up. He took her by the arm, walking off with her. Carl noticed she went with Neegan willingly this time. The fight must have gone out of her.

Carl was still standing near the door and he felt someone grab at the back of his shirt, yanking it to get his attention. He looked back to see Daryl there in the doorway. Daryl nodded his head for Carl to follow him. He did, keeping hold of Beth's hand and dragging her along. He watched Daryl walking, feeling different about the man now that he knew what happened to his face. Daryl ducked into a little room near the kitchen, ushering them inside and shutting the door behind them.

"Sorry about punching you earlier," he told Carl, "thought if I hit ya, maybe he wouldn't kill ya." Carl nodded.

"What kind of place is this?," Carl asked.

"A bad one," Beth told him. She sounded like a child again for that moment and Carl wished he was as big as that man outside. Big enough to protect her from whatever she was afraid of. Daryl pulled her into his arms, holding her against his chest. Carl put his hand on her back, patting at her gently. Then he looked up at Daryl.

"We are all getting out of here together," Carl said, trying to sound sure. Daryl seemed like he was thinking about this offer. He looked down at Beth and then looked back at Carl. Finally he nodded.

"We are going to need some help with that."


	24. Chapter 24

Day 201

Beth got up, slowly stretching out her limbs. As long as she was careful not to bump the side of her, she could finally move about freely without being in intense pain. Staring at the bottle of pills beside her bed, she thought about taking half of one. Even though she didn't really need it. She had gotten used to the way they made her feel. When she took them, it made everything in the world seem just a little less intense. The pills took the edge off.

Beth sighed and put the bottle away in the drawer. She would allow herself half of one at bedtime and that was it. She wasn't really sure what strung out meant, but she knew it was something bad that happened to people that took too much medication. And it didn't sound like something she would want to be.

Beth pulled the sheets off the bed, tossing them into a large plastic laundry basket. After weeks of being practically bed ridden and she was finally able to get up and do something. And what was she doing? The laundry. _Oh what an exciting life I lead._ Beth laughed at herself. The truth was, she hated, absolutely hated having to sit around and not do her part. It made her feel like a burden. She had actually been looking forward to being able to help with the chores again.

Dragging her basket out into the hall, she glanced down the hall and saw the door to Daryl's room hanging open. She had never been able to thank him for having Mike and Tara bring that chair for her. And she was doing her laundry anyway. Taking care of his might be a nice way to thank him without actually having to track him down and force him to speak to her. She pulled the basket down the hall.

His room was sparse and she knew he shared it with Carson. Two twin beds sat against the walls on either side of the room. She could tell which side was Daryl's. Because it was a mess. And the large bucket of crossbow bolts was kind of a dead giveaway. Beth pulled the sheets off his bed, thinking she was sure they had not been washed since they got to this place and maybe not before that. They stunk. She tossed them in the basket and then started picking up the pieces of clothing that were scattered about the room.

"What are you doing in here?" The voice was loud and unexpected. Beth jumped and dropped the pile of laundry in her arms. Daryl was in the doorway, and he did not look happy to find her in his room.

"I was going to do your laundry," she said. She bent down and started picking up the items that she dropped, feeling very confused about why Daryl seemed so angry with her.

"Why?," he asked. The way he said it, the word sounded like a curse. Beth tossed the clothes into her basket.

"Just to be nice," she said, wishing now that she had never come in here. If he wanted to act like a big mean jerk, he could do his own damn laundry.

"Do us both a favor and just don't," he said.

"What the fuck is your problem?," Beth asked him. She had one hand up on her hip. And she narrowed her eyes as she looked at him. What the fuck was his problem? She had never heard someone get so mad about having their laundry done. He walked over and started snatching his laundry back out of the basket, pretending not to be shocked by the coarse language that was coming out of Beth's mouth. She had been spending to much time with Neegan. The thought of that made him even angrier.

"You made your choice, so just do me a favor and stay the fuck away from me," he told her. Beth stood back, more confused than ever. Then it hit her. He thought she chose Neegan over him. Maybe he even thought she was in love with the big man. Beth grabbed at the things in Daryl's hands, trying to put them back into her basket. They struggled over a shirt and he let it go suddenly, so that it snapped back and hit her in the face. She threw it in the basket, and closed the distance between them, sticking her middle finger in his face.

"You don't know shit about my choices," she informed him, "I never had a choice. I did everything because I had to. To keep you safe." The truth was finally out of her now. She had been hiding it for a long time, maybe even from herself. Or at the very least, she had been trying her hardest not to think about it. She grabbed the basket and started to drag it out of the room, still flipping Daryl the bird with the other hand. Daryl stood there, looking dumbfounded. Then he charged over and snatched her up by the arm.

"What the fuck are you saying?," he asked her. She pulled back, trying to yank away from him. Not wanting him to see her cry. She could feel it, the tears and the pain there behind her anger. Getting ready to come pouring out and betray her. He did not release his grip on her.

"Neegan," she spit out, "he said he would kill any man that touched me." Daryl's face softened. But he still didn't let her go.

"You stayed with him because of that..." Daryl said. He was having a hard time accepting what she was saying. He had spent so long convincing himself that she didn't care about him. "You're not in love with him?" Beth shook her head. Then she rolled her eyes a little. There was no way she could ever love someone that didn't love her back. And the only person Neegan really loved was himself. She had a bit of a crush on the man at first, that much was true. But after living with his moods and outrageous sexual demands, she had quickly figured out Neegan was not the man she thought he was.

Daryl let go of her arm then, stepping back away from her. She moved a step forward, looking at him. He really thought she had chosen Neegan over him. Beth felt terrible now, for not talking to him sooner. But on the other, maybe it would have easier if he still believed it. Easier for both of them.

Not over thinking things for once, Beth walked over to the door. At first, she intended to leave. Run down the hall and hide in her room, pretend this conversation never happened. But then she changed her mind. Gripping the doorknob, she shut the door instead. And then twisted the lock. She turned, leaning her back against the door, breathing hard. Daryl just stood there, watching her like he was waiting to see what she might do.

She stood still a moment, trying to slow her heart. It was beating so hard she could feel it, like a rabid animal in her chest that was trying to break free. She lifted her shaking hands and started to unbutton her pants. Pushing them down along with her underpants, she stepped out of them. Then she grasped the hem of her shirt and lifted it carefully over her head. Dropping to the floor, she leaned back against the door again, this time naked, thinking about what she was going to do next.

He was still rooted to the spot, not moving closer to her. But Beth could see Daryl's eyes roaming over her body. She felt herself blush, thinking about the fact that he was seeing her fully for the first time. Her nipples went hard and she lifted her arms to push her breasts against herself and relieve a tiny bit of the pressure. Then she took a deep breath and pushed away from the door. Crossing the room quickly before she lost her nerve, she got on her tiptoes and threw her arms around Daryl's neck.

"This is a bad idea," he told her. Despite his words, his hands came up to rest lightly on her waist. She didn't want to hear any more objections. Beth already knew all the reasons why this was a bad idea, she repeated them to herself in her head everyday. She just didn't care anymore. So she covered his mouth with hers, pressing her lips against his. His fingers started to move, caressing her back. When she parted his lips and slid her small pink tounge into his mouth, she felt him come undone. His hands moved down, gripping her backside, fingers digging into her tender flesh.

When he lifted her off the floor, she wrapped her legs around his waist. She kissed him, and just kept kissing him, not wanting to give him a chance to have a second thought about this. He walked her backwards toward the bare mattress of his bed. When he felt the bed against his legs, he crawled onto it, Beth still wrapped around him. Once she felt the mattress touch her back, she let go and started yanking and pulling at Daryl's clothes. He knocked her hands away to keep her from ripping all the buttons off his shirt. Since he was unbuttoning the shirt himself, Beth pulled at his belt, unbuckling it before she unzipped his pants and pushed them down.

His erection sprung out and she took it in her hand, stroking him. He let out a moan and leaned back down to put his mouth on hers. His naked chest was pressing on her breasts, skin on skin with only her hand between them. She arched her back, bucking her hips and using her hand to try and guide him inside her eager opening. She was face to face with him, which put her up to high. Instead of taking him inside her, she was just grinding herself against the hard plane of his stomach.

Pushing off with one leg and elbow, she rolled them over. But the bed was not that wide. His back hit the wall and it took some shuffling before she had him on his back with her on top. Instead of using his hands to keep his weight off her, he was free to roam over her body with them. He touched her breasts first, pinching at her hard pink nipples and then taking the whole breast into his palm and squeezing gently. The other hand moved down between her legs, one finger sliding inside to find her soaked in her own juices.

"Move your hand," she murmered, pushing up on her knees. She grabbed him, guiding his hard length inside her and sinking down on top of him so he was as deep inside her as possible. He was equally as large as the only other man she had willingly slept with, maybe even a little bigger width wise. But she did not have the uncomfortable painful tearing feeling that usually happened when Neegan sunk into her. Instead she almost found herself wishing there was more of him, like she couldn't get enough.

He had to force himself to lay still, letting Beth set the pace that felt good to her. She braced her hands on his chest, swiveling her hips in a slow circle. Her movements became more deliberate and then he could feel her walls clenching around him as she let out a series of high pitched noises. Her eyebrows were pressed together and her eyes were shut, her perfect pink lips slightly parted as she scratched at his chest with her nails. Having pictured many times what Beth's face might look like during a climax, it felt satisfying to see he had not been far off.

Once he was sure she was finished, Daryl pulled her down, holding her against his chest. She felt like a limp noodle and soft little whimpers were coming out of her. He bent his knees and pushed into her. Hard and fast now that he knew she was already done. He pumped into her tight slit, her recent orgasm making it feel that much tighter. It didn't take him long before he came. Gripping her ass in both hands, he felt himself explode deep inside her before he could stop himself. He yanked out, but only the last bit of it hit the soft insides of her thighs. The rest of it already was inside her. He swore at himself, mumbling curses under his breath.

"Isn't the dirty talk supposed to happen before you get off?," Beth mumbled. He held her close, her little joke making him smile. He wished she could stay here all day and the rest of the night, nestled in his arms, her one leg draped over him and the heat of her sex against his hip. But the longer they stayed like this, the higher the chances got of someone catching them.

"I think we better get up," he said. Beth nodded. She rolled off him and walked over by the door to get her clothes. Her legs felt like jello and she wanted more than anything to lie back down and sleep. But she pulled on her clothes instead.

"What happens now?," she asked once she was dressed. She should have asked what she really wanted to know. _When can I see you alone again?_ But she wasn't sure if Daryl was going to want to keep doing this. To sneak around with her, behind another man's back. That was a lot to ask. Especially considering who the man was.

Daryl shook his head. He didn't know the answer to her question. But he knew one thing. There had been a thin line drawn between him and Beth for a long time now, maybe since back at the prison even. When he respected Hershel too much to make an advance on his teenage daughter. They had danced around it, but it had never been crossed until today. Today, they had opened up the flood gates, and he didn't think they were going to be able to stop what they had just started.


	25. Chapter 25

Day 248

Stuffing the last of the cans of food into the box in front of him, Daryl looked around. This was a small camp. So small that the people that lived in it had not even bothered to put up any resistance. Neegan had beaten one of it's members half to death in front of the others anyway. The man lay wheezing on the ground with his head in his daugter's lap.

The days of robbing a camp and having the women that lived there volunteer to go with them were long over. Now women huddled together in fear and stared with wide frightened eyes, watching and wondering if they were going to be hauled off with the supplies that were being taken.

Daryl walked off with the heavy box under his arm. He stuffed it into the bed of the truck. Then he leaned against the side of the truck and lit up a smoke. Carson waked over and shoved another box in behind the one that Daryl loaded. Daryl tapped another smoke out of his pack and handed it to the man. He took it gratefully, leaning down to light it and then pushing his glasses back up onto the bridge of his nose.

"We don't even need this shit," Daryl said, turning to look at the boxes stuffed in the back of the truck. Carson shrugged.

"Goin' to be a long winter, colder than Georgia. Might need it later," he countered. Daryl nodded. He guessed the man was right. But it had just felt different, stealing food when they were starving. Now they were stealing the shit just to pack it away in a storage closet somewhere. It didn't feel right. And the group they were robbing today was a particularly pathetic bunch. Old people and women mostly. The only fighters they had were teenage boys trying to protect their mothers and sisters. If Daryl had his way, he would have taken the whole lot of them and driven them over to Hilltop.

Carson kicked his leg up, resting his foot on the rim of the tire behind him. Daryl didn't stare at the man, but he did look at him. He looked like he had aged ten years in the last few months. Missing his brother was taking a toll on him. It was taking a toll on all of them. Harlan had not just been the doctor of the group, he had been the heart and soul of it as well. He would have spoken up for the people they were robbing today. He had always been the one that was willing to speak up when he thought Neegan was taking things too far. Now that he was gone, no one else bothered.

"Miss your brother?," Daryl asked. Carson took another drag off the cigarette he was holding between his fingers. Then he nodded.

"Is it that obvious?," he asked.

"Nah, I just know how you feel," Daryl said. _Except my brother's dead, yours just isn't here because hates us._ Carson held out his fist for Daryl to bump his into. This gesture was really the only form of affection the man ever offered. Carson opened his mouth to say something else, but he was interuppted by a loud scream coming from inside the small camp they were robbing. The two men tossed their smokes and ran back in the direction they had come from.

By the time Daryl covered the short distance back from the truck, shit was already going to hell. David, that fucking perve, had one of the younger women from the camp on the ground. Her shirt was ripped open and she was crying. Tara had her baton out, yelling for him to get off the girl. Mike was yelling for Neegan, who apparently had conveniently wandered off in the middle of the raid to take a shit. Carson got between Tara and the man on the ground before the situation got really ugly.

"You know that shit's against the rules man," Carson reminded the man, "no raping."

"Neegan said no raping the girls back at camp," David insisted, "he never said anything about random bitches out on the road." All Neegan had told him was to keep his fucking hands off his wives. And this wasn't one of his wives. This whore was fair fucking game as far as David was concerned. She wasn't bad looking either, he was ready to have himself a good time with her.

"Get the fuck off her now," Tara hollered. She brandished her baton in her hand and stepped around Carson, who moved, figuring at this point the fucker had been warned. He was going either going to let the girl go or get what he deserved. Daryl watched all this, pointing his bow at the man in case he decided to pull his gun on Tara. If he made that move, it was going to be his last. "This is your last warning," Tara said, "let her go."

"Fuck you," David told the woman. Then he used one hand to start unzipping his pants. The girl under him lay still while the argument was happening, but now she was thrashing around, trying to get away. Tara darted towards him the man like a damn anaconda. No matter how many times Daryl saw her move that fast, it never failed to impress him. She hit David across the face with her baton. And since all his teeth didn't fly out of his mouth, Daryl knew she had checked herself. She had not hit him as hard as she could. Just given him a little love tap really.

"Want to try hitting a woman that hits back for a change?," she asked him. David let go of the girl, who backed away quickly, trying to put her ripped up shirt back together. Then he got to his feet, moving like he was really going to try and hit Tara. She darted in, smacking him hard in the back of one of his knees and then dancing out of his reach. He swore, grabbing at the spot where she hit him and almost falling flat on his face. That's when he got his gun out. He pointed the gun at Tara.

"You bitch," he swore.

"Put it down," Mike said. Now he had his gun pointed at the man. David looked around and saw that Daryl and Carson also had their sights set on him.

"This is some bullshit," David complained. Daryl was considering just shooting the man. Most people at camp didn't like him. He was lazy. The only reason he had made it this far was that he sucked up to Neegan every chance he got.

"What in the holy fucking hell is going on!," Neegan boomed out. His voice echoed through the woods, making flocks of birds flap off into the air.

"This fucker grabbed one of those women and started trying to rape her," Tara announced, pointing at David. Neegan walked into the camp and strode over to David. They all lowered their weapons without having to be told. No one pointed a gun at Neegan. He put his arm around the man's shoulders, friendly at first. Then he punched him hard in the gut. David hunched forward, the air whistling out of him in a whoosh.

"Go sit in the fucking truck," Neegan told him. David looked like he was thinking about arguing with the big man for a moment, but then he thought better of it and limped off towards the truck. Tara watched him go, mumbling curses under her breath. Neegan ignored her and grabbed another box, heading for the truck with it. This was the cue for everyone to finish loading up and stop horsing around. Tara leaned down to pick up a box. The girl David had on the ground caught hold of her wrist.

"Thank you," she said. Tara nodded. Daryl was watching. He glanced back towards the path, making sure Neegan was out of sight. Then he knelt down and spoke quietly to the girl.

"Start walking southeast. There's a town there. They take people in." He didn't wait for a response from the girl. He just picked up the box he was reaching for and picked it up like he had never said anything at all. But Tara heard him. A small smile waas playing at the corners of her mouth. He could hear it now in her teasing voice. _She's a pretty one, going soft Dixon?_ He ignored her and headed for the truck. The last thing he was doing was going soft.


	26. Chapter 26

Day 389

Beth scooped at the dirt, wondering again if digging with her hands like a dog might be more effective than the broken garbage can lid she was using. The loud popping sounds of gunshots seemed to be coming from every imaginable direction. She knew if they didn't hurry up, someone from the wrong side of this battle was going to see them. Beth grasped the bottom of the fence, yanking up on it.

"Try it now," she told Carl. He dove into the dirt as she pulled up on the fence with every ounce of strength she had in her. His shirt caught, but he kept going despite the sound of the fabric ripping. His shoe caught and he had to pull his foot out of it to get loose. But he made it out through the small hole in one piece. Beth let go of the fence and Carl ripped his shoe free, stuffing his foot into it forcefully. She tossed the only knife she had been able to steal under the fence for him to snatch up. Gripping the fence with her hands, she said a silent prayer for the boy. He reached for her, one of his hands closing around one of hers, their palms touching through the fence.

"Run," she told him, "don't stop running until you see your dad." Carl said nothing, fighting the emotions that were coursing through him. He knew Beth staying here was part of the plan. But he didn't feel right running and leaving her behind to the mercy of the madman that ran this place.

"Come with me," he begged. She shook her head.

"I can't. Not without Daryl. Tell Maggie I love her," she said. Carl nodded. She could see his eyes start to fill with tears and he wiped them away with the dirty sleeve of his shirt. He squeezed her hand one more time and then he ran. He stabbed three of the fence walkers with the kitchen knife Beth stole for him and then climbed under them, pushing through the wooden posts of the second fence. Beth knew she should run back inside, pretend she was never out here. But she had to see. Had to know for sure that Carl got away safe. Once he disappeared into the woods, she turned and ran.

Most of the gunfire was coming from the front of the building. A distraction. So Carl would be able to get away. The rest of the plan would come later. If there was a later. Maybe tomorrow they would all be dead. Beth ran, boosting herself up on the ledge and climbing back in the window she had come out of. Amber grabbed her once she was halfway in, pulling her the rest of the way inside the building. Beth flopped in the floor. She pulled herself onto her feet while Amber slammed the window shut.

"He made it, he got away," Beth said, throwing her arms around the other girl. Amber hugged her back. Then she froze. Loud footsteps were coming from the hall outside the room they were in. The girls ran for the door, flattening themselves against the wall so they would be behind the door if it was opened. The door did swing open, a man's head poking inside and taking a look around. Beth felt Amber's hand tighten around hers. She didn't even have a knife. The only one she had, she had just given to Carl. The tip of a gun poked in, Beth could see it past the edge of the door. Then it disappeared and the door shut. She heard the footsteps echoing back down the hallway away from them. Beth let herself breath again.

"We need to get back downstairs now," Amber told her. Beth nodded in firm agreement. They had a little bunker where they were supposed to hide if there was ever any kind of shootout. When the other girls ran for it, Beth and Amber darted the other way and ran to let Carl out of the room where he was being held. There was so much confusion, Beth doubted anyone would notice their short absence as long as they were hiding down there with the other girls once the fighting was done.

Beth cracked the door open, making sure whoever had been walking the hallway was gone. Then she took tight hold of Amber's hand and ran for the saferoom, pulling the other girl along behind her. Tara was standing outside the door holding a very large automatic weapon. She tilted her head, giving Beth a questioning look. Beth gave her a little nod and she saw the corners of Tara's mouth turn up in a smile.

There was a very small list of people in this group that Beth could trust. She was thankful everyday that Tara was on it. Daryl said Tara came to him. Upset about what happened on the roadside that day. Neegan had been ready to let that boy get raped to prove his stupid point. Over a blow to nothing but his ego. Rape was supposed to be against the rules. First Tara thought about running away. But like everyone else here, she was scared she couldn't make in on her own. She had gone to Daryl, knowing that she could vent to him and he would never betray her trust. And now she was with them. Beth knew if they had Tara, they had Mike. It wasn't much against Neegan's entire army, but four was better than two. And Amber made five.

Tara pulled her handgun out of the holster on her hip. She handed it to Beth. "I am going up to help with the fight," she said, "you are on guard duty." Beth nodded. She knew that was code. It felt like all they did these days was speak in code. Once Tara went up, that was code to Daryl that Carl was out safe. Beth knew Daryl had an arrow that was red on the back feathery part. When he shot that out, it was to let Rick know to fall back.

Daryl had been making the collection runs to Alexandria. Since he had been bringing back a full load each time, Neegan had not seen the need to go back there himself. So Daryl had plenty of time to plot with Rick. If Tara and Mike went with him, he didn't even have to be sneaky about it. But Rick had been reluctant to trust him. He wanted Carl back before he was willing to go any further with them. Today was a practice run. The real battle was going to come later.

Daryl was watching for Tara, trying not to be too obvious about it. All around him were dead bodies. They littered the ground and the rooftop like so many crushed out cigarette butts. Not all of them were his friends. In fact, most of them were not. But they were men he had gone out on runs with, talked with and eaten with. Members of his group. And their deaths were all on him. He did not shoot them himself but he might as well have.

Tara appeared on the roof, not looking at him. She pulled out her rifle and layed down like she was really aiming, trying to kill the people that were shooting at them from the woods. Her dark hair was pulled back in a ponytail and a bit of light glinted off the silver baton she always had at her side. Daryl pulled an arrow from the bucket at his feet. The one with the red fletching on it. He set his sights on the tree that he had seen Rick ducking behind. Aiming for the middle of the trunk, he fired.

Like in some strange way he had been in on the plan from the beginning, Neegan appeared back out on the roof. Daryl wondered where he had gone. It was not like the big man to miss out on any fighting that might be going on. Daryl had been worried when he and Carson disappeared. They might have been heading out into the woods to circle around the back of the group. Not all of them knew what was really happening here. But if they got ahold of someone that did and made them talk, it would be bad fucking news for Daryl.

Neegan had not gone out and circled around the shooters in the woods. Instead he had gone and gotten the biggest, most ridiculous looking gun Daryl had ever seen. It was a huge machine gun. The kind that you had to strap to your back or you might not even be able to hold up the weight of it. The only place Daryl had seen a gun like that was in the movies. Being that it far too heavy to run from the roamers with, no one had ever tried to use it before.

Walking slowly from the weight of the gun, Neegan stomped over to the edge of the roof and started really letting go. Firing into the trees with the shells of bullets dropping all around him. They rained down onto the rooftop in a waterfall of clinking metal. The big man was yelling every profane word he knew at the top of his lungs, which was a long list especially since he was getting pretty creative with his insults.

"Cunt fucking ass mongers, fucking chicken shit goat faced white trash nazi twat waffles!" By this time, several people on the roof were laughing despite being in the middle of a shootout. "Fuck you, you god damned lazy slut biscuits. I will fuck every single one of your mothers!" He shot the huge gun, shouting over the noise of it and smiling that crazy ass smile he got on his face whenever he was causing someone else pain.

"You got them on the run!," a man yelled out. His name escaped Daryl at the moment, he had come in with Amber and Mark's group but he was a little older then them. The man held up his own gun, shooting into the trees. Daryl could tell just by the way he was holding the gun that it was unlikely that he would hit anyone with it. His grip was all wrong. Fuckin' idiot. Daryl loaded his bow back up, but he didn't bother shooting it again. No one was watching him.

He took another look at the dead body that was closest to him. That man had a name. Davis. He had been with them since before the caravan. They picked him up at the same camp they picked up Lauren and Jasmine. The camp run by those asshole military guys. And what had Davis died for today? So that Daryl and Beth could be together? Daryl knelt down and stabbed him through the head, making sure he wouldn't turn. Then he closed the man's eyes, grateful for the full bottle of whiskey that was waiting for him back in his room. He silently reminded himself this was about more than him and Beth. This was about Alexandria, and Hilltop, and even about all the people here that should not be forced to live under the rule of a crazy tyrant. And most of all, it was about the small fragile life growing inside Beth.

That baby deserved better than this. He closed his eyes a moment and thought about the last few nights. Beth had been sneaking down into the area where the holding cells were. She figured if she got caught down there, she could say she was talking to Carl. That was an offense, but not one that was likely to get her or Carl killed. Really she had been meeting Daryl down there. Not to fuck, though they had slipped up and done that a few times. Fast and hurried in a darkened room with only the sounds of their heavy breathing around them. It was never enough.

She had come for that, but mostly she had come so that they could have a private moment together. Talk to each other, touch hands, look at each other without having to quickly look away before someone saw them. Last night they had not fucked, he had just held her close, rubbing his hand over the small hard bump below the line of even her underpants. She wasn't showing yet, thank god, but if he pressed in gently, he could feel it there. His baby.

There was no telling if the baby would be a boy or a girl. Or what it would look like. But it made Daryl the happiest to think of it as a girl. Pretty like Beth with big blue eyes and maybe his brother's wild curls that he had always been trying to shave off or brush out straight. She was worth all this.

Once Neegan stopped shooting and screaming for long enough, the sound of cars being started and taking off down the road could be heard. Daryl knew they would stop once they were over the hill and out of sight of the factory to pick up Carl. With him gone, Beth was going to have to stay in her room at night. They were so close to the end, it would be more than stupid if they let themselves get caught now.


	27. Chapter 27

Day 275

Daryl was heading for the truck with Tara when Gary walked by. The side of his face was healing up, but it still made Daryl cringe inside. Neegan was finding more and more reasons to burn people, and Daryl was starting to suspect that the big man just enjoyed inflicting pain on people. That kid from Hilltop had almost gotten them all killed on that run. He had deserved a little payback. But Gary? All he had done was fall asleep on guard duty. And he had been awake all day helping with shit that wasn't even his job before that.

Daryl didn't like it. But like everyone else, he had just stood there and watched it happen, hoping someone else would be the one to stand up and say something. Each person had his own reasons for staying quiet. Daryl's was that he was already sleeping with Beth behind Neegan's back and he didn't feel like bringing any extra attention onto himself or his situation. It was a pretty shitty reason for letting somone else get burned in the face, but it was what it was.

Tara was helping Beth adjust the holster on her thigh. Daryl had no idea how Beth managed to talk Neegan into letting her go on a run, and he wasn't sure he wanted to know. He knew the excuse had something to do with needing feminine items, and the guys not knowing what they were looking for. So she and Tara were going to go alone. But then Mike and Daryl graciously volunteered to go with them. Just to make sure they were safe of course.

The store they were going to was only about an hour away, and they cleared the place of walkers when they had gone in about a month ago to clean out the pharmacy portion of the place. So the run itself was pretty low risk. And the best part was that Daryl knew Mike and Tara were going to want to sneak off and have a fuck while they were there. They had their own room at the compound, but they got some kind of a thrill out of doing it in other places.

Personally, Daryl thought fucking Tara would be scary enough. She wasn't bad looking. But to say she was aggressive was about the understatement of the year. Mike seemed to like it, so more power to him. The only reason why Daryl concerned himself with their business was because when they snuck off, it was going to put him alone with Beth. Outside of this place. Where they might have some private time that was actually private. Unlike Tara and Mike, he didn't find the possibility of getting caught to be all that thrilling. The sneaking around was starting to get to him.

Getting the items the girls needed from the drug store had taken about a whole two minutes. Tara had taken all the condoms, except one box Daryl pocketed while she wasn't looking. And Beth had filled a few bags up with pads, tampons, and yeast infection cream that she made sure to tell everyone was not for her. Just like Daryl guessed, Mike and Tara suddenly needed to go check out the back room. Together of course. With the bag of condoms.

As soon as they were out of sight, Beth lunged at Daryl. She kissed him hard on the mouth, reaching her hands up under his shirt. Daryl was not sure he felt comfortable kissing her right in front of the large glass windows of the store. He didn't think anyone from their group would be by, but someone else might. And there were always the roamers to worry about. He looked around for somewhere they could go and settled on the cooler.

Pulling Beth inside, he propped the door open. Partly because the place was a little stuffy and partly because he wanted to listen for Mike and Tara. He didn't think they would say anything if they saw him and Beth together, but it was just better to be as careful as possible. Beth put her arms around him again, kissing him behind the ear and then pulling at the collar of his shirt so she could kiss the hollow of his neck. Her hair smelled like oranges and it felt soft as silk in his hands. Besides her big blue eyes, Beth's hair was his favorite part of her. She tried to keep it pulled back, but little pieces of it were always escaping to curl up around her face.

"Got something for you," he told her, pulling the condoms out of his pocket. She looked at them and then wrinkled her little nose up.

"My favorite," she announced, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She hated condoms, whatever they were made of, they made her crotch itch like crazy for the whole day.

"Better than a baby...," Daryl told her, flinging the box into her face. She caught it and hurled the box back at him as hard as she could, hoping the unwanted items inside might be ruined in the impact. He caught the box easily, tossing it aside for now on top of a crate of expired juice drinks. Being outside of the compound felt good, liberating even. Daryl found himself feeling a bit like a dog that had been locked inside a crate for too long. "You wanna play rough?," he asked Beth, grabbing at her waist and wrapping the other arm around her under the chin in a loose headlock.

"Let me go, you're crazy," she told him. She was wiggling around but he could tell she wasn't trying very hard to get away. Having her body so close to his was making him go hard inside his pants. And he figured she must have felt it against the curve of her ass, since she stopped trying to wiggle away and reached behind her back with one hand to rub at him through the thick fabric of his jeans. The arm he had around her throat became a hand that was softly touching the taunt cords of her neck as she stretched it to lean back and kiss him. Her other hand went behind her back, joining the first one to unbutton his jeans and reach inside.

He moved his hands, letting them roam over her body. One creeping up from her stomach and the other coming down from her throat to push the front of her tank top down. Her small breasts sprung free and he put his hands on them, grasping at her nipples with his rough fingertips. She moaned into his mouth, feeling the urge to press her legs together in a feeble attempt to relieve some of the building pressure between her legs.

Taking her hands off him, Beth pushed down the stretchy excersize pants she had on until they scrunched up around her ankles. When she bent down the growing wetness between her legs pushed into the base of his dick and he had to fight the sudden urge to dig his fingers into her hips and slam into her. Instead he pulled his vest off and lay it down on the floor for her to lay down on.

She sat on the vest, leaning back and bringing her feet up. Her pants were still around her ankles and when he got on top of her, her feet were pinned in place. Daryl never took off more of his clothes than he had to. And the hard teeth of his zippper dug into her thighs and the underside of her ass when he pushed inside her, the box of condoms forgotten on top of the case of juice.

Unable to get a the angle she preferred because her feet were pinned down, Beth found herself frustrated at first. But as he increased the speed of his thrusts, she found he was rubbing against a different but equally sensitive spot inside her. After some urging and pleading and a promise that it wasn't going to hurt her, he pushed harder and faster until she felt the sensations building up inside her.

The little jiggle to her breasts each time he pushed inside her was almost too much. Daryl buried his face in her hair so he couldn't see them anymore. He could tell she was close and he didn't want to shoot off before she was done. Thankfully he soon heard her making the little cries that he knew by now meant she had found her release. After them came a flood of warmth as she tightened around him. That was it. He yanked out of her, turning and shooting his load off on whatever crate of beverages happened to have the misfortune of being on the right side of him.

"See," she said, "we didn't need a condom." He tried to give her a dirty look but ended up laughing. Then like they always had to, he got up and started tucking himself back into his pants. Beth got up and brushed herself off, then pulled her pants up and adjusted her shirt so her breasts were covered. Daryl walked out of the cooler and leaned against the front widow, lighting up a smoke. After the first drag, he felt Beth's arms go around his waist and she leaned her head against his back. She looked out the window, her eyes on the truck they came on.

"We could just take the truck and go," she said. Her voice was soft and dreamy. Daryl had to admit, the idea had a certain appeal. Drive north, like they had originally planned. Find a little cabin somewhere far away from this place. Live off the land. They could do it. Tara and Mike would be alright. People back at the compound knew where they had gone, someone would come to check on them eventually. Before he could answer, Mike's voice rang out from the back of the store, followed by Tara's laughter.

"Ok, the back room has been fully secured, we can go home now."


	28. Chapter 28

Day 301

"Yes, yes, we have an understanding," Greg said. Blood was splashed across the front of his shirt, and his eyes kept drifting to Neegan's hands. His knuckles were bruised and covered with so much blood that it was running down one of his fingers and dripping off onto the ground.

The collection was short. And it had been short the week before. They had too much rain. Some of the crops got powdery mildew and half the tomatoes got blossom end rot. Greg had explained all that to Daryl the week before. He had not been happy, but at least he seemed to understand that there some things were out of Greg's control. And the weather was one of them.

Today Neegan had shown up himself. As soon as Greg saw the big man, he had the urge to run away and hide. Neegan only came for the collection if he had a problem. Or if he wanted to make a problem for them. He and Greg had spoken back and forth for a few minutes, with Greg trying to explain his situation and not doing a very good job of it. Neegan just kept swearing at him. Finally Greg had just told the man that he couldn't give him what he didn't have. Neegan did not respond to him, he just grabbed one of the men that was waiting to help load up the collection and started beating the shit out of him.

The man's son had also been waiting to help load the supplies. He made the mistake of trying to jump in and stop his father from being injured. And so Neegan had beaten him bloody too. Greg wasn't sure if the man's son was even still breathing. If he lived he was going to be permanently disfigured. Just looking at him made Greg want to puke.

"I understand," Greg said again. Neegan moved towards him and he stepped back, flinching away. The big man laughed at him. Then he slapped his face lightly leaving a bloody handprint on his cheek.

"You had fuckin' better understand," Neegan told the man, "or else next time that's going to be you on the ground." Neegan pointed to the man lying in a growing puddle of his own blood.

Daryl tried not to look at the men on the ground. He had already warned Greg the week before what was going to happen if the collection was short again. Greg had given him some stupid song and dance about rain and blossoms. Darly knew how well that was going to go over. Neegan did not care about shit like that. He just wanted what he felt Greg owed him. And one way or the other he would make sure he got it. He liked hurting people. If they refused to give him what he wanted, he would be more than happy to beat everyone in this town bloody to get it.

To avoid looking at the blood that seemed to be splattered all over the ground, Daryl gazed down the street. He saw Harlan sitting on the front stoop of a random house. Harlan was often close by when they were taking up the collection. Looking for his brother. Daryl figured the man missed Carson and wanted to talk to him.

Neegan never said, but Daryl guessed that was the reason that the big man never sent Carson on collection runs to Hilltop. He probably didn't want to give Harlan the chance to talk Carson into jumping ship. Daryl knew Neegan was smart enough to see the potential of what might take place if Carson turned on them. All the people in Hilltop needed was a strong fighter to lead them. They outnumbered Neegan's group three to one. If these farmers quit acting like a bunch of chicken shits, they could take them on and maybe win. But that was never going to happen with Greg in charge. He was the head chicken shit, king of the retards. Neegan had him running scared.

Tara kept her gun pointed at the group of men near the wagon. But she really just wanted to turn around and leave. This was all just some of the stupidest most pointless horseshit she had ever seen. Two men had likely lost their lives today for no reason at all. The deal Neegan had with Hilltop was for a percentage of their crop. And if the crop was smaller, it only made sense that the collection was going to be smaller. They had enough food to feed a fucking army back in the store rooms at the compound. This was just about Neegan and his need to impose his will on the people here. His insane need for people to fear and respect him. What he didn't understand was there was a price to pay for what he wanted. He was losing him the trust and respect of the people closest to him.


	29. Chapter 29

Day 399

They fanned out around the town, sneaking through the woods like so many poisonous snakes. Daryl could feel his heart beating in his chest. He looked around at the members of his group that he could still see, knowing the bullets in their guns and the knives on their belts were dipped in the blood of a freshly killed roamer. That had not been part of the plan. Neegan had come up with that idea right before they left. There was not going to be a single shot fired today that wasn't fatal.

Rick knew they were coming. He was ready for the attack, but Daryl doubted he was really ready for what was about to hit this town. Some people climbed up into the taller trees around Alexandria. Others climbed the steel walls, hot from the heat of the afternoon sun. They hid inside the town, positioning themselves behind houses and bushes. Daryl was with them, waiting for the signal to attack that he knew was coming soon. He crouched behind a bush in someone's front yard, watching a woman sweeeping stray leaves off her sidewalk. A boy about Carl's age went around her, walking his dog down the block.

Daryl knew some of these people were not exactly battle hardened. But he was really having second thoughts about this now. There was no way these people were going to be able to stand up against what was coming. A lot of them were going to die today. Daryl heard the car horn, honking at the front gate. That was Neegan. He said he wanted to give Rick a chance to surrender. But he really just wanted to hear himself talk. The attack on the compound and Carl's subsequent escape had wounded his ego. He was going to give the signal to attack no matter what Rick said.

At the sound of the horn, the woman sweeping her sidewalk looked up. She dropped her broom and hurried inside her house. Daryl tightened the scrap of blue bandana that was tied around his arm. Tara had made a show in front of Neegan, tearing up her 'lucky' bandana and giving a scrap to Mike and Daryl. It was really a secret sign. So the Alexandrians knew not to shoot at the people wearing them. Most of them knew what Tara and Daryl looked like. He was hard to miss with the side of his face looking like cooked hamburger. And since Tara was the only woman fighter they had, she was easy to spot. But Mike could easily be mistaken for several other young black men they had with them. The bandanas were mostly for him.

The sound of Neegan's loud voice could be heard even from where Daryl was hiding. But he couldn't hear what Rick was saying back to the man. Whatever conversation was being had, it went on for a few more minutes. Then a single gunshot rang out. The signal to attack. Gunshots started ringing out in every direction, the people hiding in the trees were firing into the town. Daryl moved from his hiding spot, being careful to stay out of the mine of fire. The last thing he wanted was to be caught in the crossfire and hit with an infected bullet.

Another member of his group was hiding in the bushes next door. Daryl darted in, crouching next to him. He was a younger man, a member of Hilltop that had left with them when they moved to the factory. One of Neegan's new inner circle, or as Tara liked to call them, Neegan's yes men. She made this little joke since she thought none of them were good for anything except saying yes to whatever crazy idea Neegan had.

"Hey, we are supposed to hold position until they start shooting back," the man told Daryl. Daryl nodded. Then he brought his hunting knife up under the man's chin, cutting his throat open in one quick motion. The man flopped on the ground, a gurgle of blood bubbling out of his mouth. Daryl stabbed him through the ear, killing the brain. He wiped the blood off his hands onto his pants. Then he moved on to where he had seen the next person hide.

Tara ran between two houses, the chaos of the battle was in full swing now. People were everywhere, shooting and fighting. Another person darted out in front of her, heading the other way, and they almost collided. The person was wearing Seth's purple hooded jacket, but it wasn't Seth. He was black, and this person was white and had a scarf covering their face. They held their guns up, pointing them at each other. No member of the saviors would point a gun at Tara. She held up the arm with the blue hanky tied onto it. The person pulled the scarf down, revealing that it was the woman Daryl knew. The one that Beth had let go from the holding cells in the basement of the factory.

"Carol?," Tara asked. The woman nodded. Tara nodded back and then they both moved around each other and took off in oppposite directions. Tara came around, seeing another man kicking in the door to one of the houses. There was a woman screaming inside. Tara grabbed the top of the porch railing and swung herself onto the edge of the porch. She hopped the railing and took off inside after the man. She found him in the kitchen, pointing his gun at a blonde woman and her son. He heard her footsteps behind him and turned quickly.

"Oh hey Tara," the man said, the relief on his face obvious. She lifted her gun and shot him in the face. The back of his head exploded all of the woman and her son, splashing them with blood and bits of his brain. As his body fell, Tara locked eyes with the woman.

"Get upstairs and hide," Tara told her, "don't come down until the shooting stops." The woman nodded. Her hands were shaking. Still she managed to scoop up the gun the man had been pointing at her before she ran for the steps, herding her small son up the stairs in front of her.

Tara heard the sound of someone else entering the house. She lifted her gun back up, stepping sideways quietly towards the noise. When she saw it was only Mike, she lowered her gun and rushed into his arms. He held her close, the hilt of one of the knives on his belt digging into her hip.

The fight was not going as badly as Daryl thought it might. But the Alexandrians were not holding their own as well as Rick had insisted they would. Something needed to be done. And fast. Daryl headed down the street, looking for Neegan. He spotted the man, chasing Greg from Hilltop through someone's flower garden. Daryl had seen a few people running around that looked familiar from Hilltop, but now that he saw Greg he knew what was going on. People from Hilltop must have come to help with the fight.

Neegan wanted to beat Greg with his bare hands, but he was tired of chasing the man around. He pulled out his gun and shot him in the calf. Daryl sucked in his breath. Greg was a regular coward. Daryl was surprised he was even here. If he saw Neegan was about to kill him, he might start spilling information. And Daryl didn't know how much information Greg had. He might know everything. Daryl already had an arrow loaded in his bow. When Greg fell, grabbing at his leg and screaming, Daryl did not wait. He shot him right through the head. Neegan looked to see where the arrow was coming from and gave Daryl a smile.

"Was going to have me some fun with this fucker," Neegan declared, looking like he was a little disapointed that Greg had met his end so quickly. Daryl's bow was empty. But he still had a loaded handgun on his hip. He could kill Neegan and end this now. And he wanted to. But seeing their leader dead might insight the rest of the group to really go crazy on the people of this town. Daryl did not want that to happen. A full on slaughter of Rick and his people was most definitely not part of the plan. Daryl had to get his people out of here. And only Neegan could do that.

"Think we taught them a lesson," Daryl said, "they got the message, we should leave."

"Fuck that," Neegan said, "I ain't killed that kid yet." Daryl assumed Neegan meant Carl. Why he was on a personal mission to kill the boy was another issue. Maybe he wanted to teach Rick a lesson, or maybe he was mad the boy escaped and made him look stupid. Or maybe he was just that fucking insane. Daryl didn't really care at the moment, he just wanted them to leave.

"Kill everyone and we won't have anyone to take up fuckin' collection from," Daryl tried to remind the man, "you planning to take up farming?"

"Fuck," Neegan swore. Daryl had a fucking point. He could always kill that sneaky little fucker later. Maybe the next time they came for collection. Neegan rubbed at his chin. Then he screamed in pain, turning from the impact of a bullet wound to his shoulder. Daryl looked around. He spotted Rick leaning out from the side of a nearby house. Pulling out his gun, Daryl went after him. He could hear Neegan's voice booming out over the gunfire.

"Pack it the fuck in! Time to go!"

Daryl chased Rick around the back of the house. They pointed their guns at each other, the trust between them tentative at best.

"You were supposed to kill him," Rick told him, his tone accusatory.

"You were supposed to be winning this fight," Daryl spit back. Rick nodded.

"Time for a new plan."


	30. Chapter 30

Day 324

"We should set up a radio to draw some of them away first," Daryl said, "Come back tomorrow." He looked over the crowded lot. There was no other way inside the large grocery store. They had already tried knocking the other doors in. All of them had all been barricaded well from inside the building. Leaving only one entrance was a good idea, until it was blocked and you needed to get out. It looked like another group had fenced in an area around the front door a while ago of the store to keep the roamers out. But now it was just keeping them in, since everyone in the group had died and then woken back up.

There were a lot of roamers inside that fence. More than Daryl wanted to tangle with, especially since there were only a few of them out on this run. If the whole group was here, they could this herd on easily. But the whole group was not here. It was only him, Neegan, Carson, and some other new guy that seemed overly excited about what Neegan was planning to do.

"There's too many," Carson said. He agreed with Daryl. They weren't starving. There was no reason they couldn't come back the next day with more people and kill them, or clip part of the fence and let the roamers wander away. Come back tomorrow after they were gone and sack the place. He still respected Neegan as the leader, but he also felt the man had been taking too many risks lately. Unnecessary risks.

"There's not many that many of those fuckers down there," Neegan insisted, "we can fucking take them easy." The new guy was quick to agree with this. He had not been with the group long, but he had been there long enough to figure out that agreeing with Neegan was the only way to get ahead in this group. "Do you fucking chicken shits want to live forever?," Neegan hollered.

"No, but I would like to live to see tomorrow," Daryl mumbled under his breath. Before he could try and talk anymore sense into Neegan, the big man charged ahead towards the fence, screaming like a fucking lunatic. The other men had no choice now but to follow him. It was either that or let him get swarmed by that herd once they tore down the fence to come after him.

The attack did not go south as quickly as Daryl thought that it would. The fence held at first, and they killed a large portion of the roamers inside by stabbing them through the fence without getting too close. The problem was, Neegan was hollering and swearing while he was stabbing at the things. And the new guy was following his example. It was getting the roamers inside the fence more worked up than they would have been if this had been done quietly.

The dead were piling up against the metal chain link of the fence. The poles holding it in place were starting to lean and wobble. The panel of fencing that Daryl was stabbing through was about to give out. He started to back up, but he had underestimated how long the fence would hold. It came crashing down on top of him, knocking him to the ground and pinning his leg underneath. He looked back, seeing the dead coming at him in a hoard. In that moment, he believed he was going to die.

Carson started shooting the closest ones while Neegan grabbed the fence and wrenched upwards with all his strength. The new guy was screaming that they ought to leave him and run. Daryl slid forward, yanking his leg free and scrambling to his feet. His leg hurt, but it was holding his weight. He felt Carson's arm go around him under his shoulders, just in case. They booked it for the truck, the whole herd pushing through the opening in the fence and funneling out into the parking lot. Then the panels around that one came crashing down. And all the dead were loose. There had been even more of them inside the store that the men had not known were there.

With the herd on their heels, the men jumped into the truck, slamming the doors shut. Carson twisted the key in the ignition. The truck made a chugging rattling noise, but it did not spring to life. Neegan starting screaming every foul word he knew, whether he was yelling them at the truck or at the approaching herd of roamers was uncertain.

"Try it again!," Daryl screamed over the big man's curses.

"What the fuck you do think I'm doing!," Carson yelled back. The new guy looked like a rabbit in a trap. At the last minute, he decided to bail out. Flinging the door of the truck open, he tried to run. But he moved too late. The herd caught him, and all that could be heard after that were the sreams as he was being ripped apart. Daryl slid over and pulled the door of the truck shut, cursing at the man for trying to take off like that.

Carson turned the key again. The engine chugged once more, but this time it turned over and roared to life. He slammed the thing into drive and jammed on the gas, sending a few roamers flying as he tried to maneuver around most of them. Once they were safely out of the parking lot, Daryl leaned back against the seat and closed his eyes. He said a silent thank you to anyone that might be listening. His guardian angel maybe, or Merle. Then he put his leg up of the seat next to him and pulled his pantleg up to see how badly he was hurt.


	31. Chapter 31

Day 325

Beth watched out the window until she saw the trucks pull out of the long drive that was lined with walkers. Whenever Neegan left, she felt it in her chest. A lightening sensation. The hope was always there that he might not come back, though she sometimes felt a little guilty for thinking that way. He didn't beat her or abuse her, he just wouldn't let her go.

Making up some flimsy excuse about needing to go to the kitchen for something, Beth headed out of the room. She was so excited to get to her and Daryl's meeting spot that she didn't notice Crystal following her. Beth stopped in the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water. Then she headed around the back and up the other set of steps. There were a few empty rooms at the end of the hall that no one wanted because they didn't have windows. Not a lot of people came down this way, especially not in the middle of the day. The room at the very end of the hall was where she and Daryl sometimes met.

Daryl was already inside the room, waiting for her. Unlike Beth, he could go where he pleased without having to justify his behavior to a room full of other girls. He was lying back on a blanket with one of his legs propped up on a pillow. When he saw Beth in the doorway, he moved his leg down quickly, trying to pretend nothing was wrong with it.

Beth closed the door behind her and felt around for the small lantern they kept inside the room. She found it with her hands and flicked the switch, illuminating them both in an eerie glow. When she grasped his pantleg and tried to push it up, Daryl shoved her hands away.

"What happened?, she asked him. When someone was hiding an injury, the same thought always came to mind. A bite.

"I ain't bit," he told her.

"Then let me see," she insisted, grasping at the hem of his pants again. He grunted and flopped back down on the blanket. Beth could be very persistent. If she wanted to see his ugly leg, she could go ahead and look, he had only been trying to spare her the worry.

His leg and ankle were slightly swollen. But that was not the worst part. His whole calf was covered in horrible red and dark purple bruises, like his leg had almost been smashed flat like a pancake. Beth sucked in her breath, running the tips of her gentle fingers over him.

"What happened?," she asked again, more concern in her voice this time.

"Had a disagreement with a fence," he said. Beth ran her fingers over the area again. Then she reached into her pocket and pulled out a small plastic bag full of pills. She took one out and handed it to Daryl. He took the pill, holding it closer to the light so he could see what it was.

"What the fuck are ya doin' with this shit?," he asked, "I don't like you takin' this shit I done told ya before." When her ribs were hurting, taking the pills had been one thing. But he didn't want her turning into a damn junkie. Beth shrugged and stuffed the baggie back into her pocket. She only took a half of one. And only when she needed it. Daryl tossed the pill down his throat and took a swallow from her water bottle.

"I only take them when I need to," she said. Her face said the rest. Neegan expected certain things from her. Things she just couldn't do anymore unless she had something to take the edge off first. Daryl caught her by the wrist and pulled her down against his chest. He didn't want her to see his face. And for the moment, he didn't think he could look at her's either. Imagining the reasons she was taking the pills made him feel sick inside.

"Been thinkin' bout what you said before," he told her. He rubbed her back in soft circles, his hand drifting up under her shirt. "About leavin'." Daryl still thought it was dangerous for them to go out there alone. But after what happened the day before, he was not so sure that staying at the compound was any safer.

Beth stayed quiet, but she could feel her heart beating harder in her chest. She could already taste the freedom on the tip of her tounge. Daryl didn't understand what it was like, being cooped up in this place all day.

"I go out huntin' a lot. Would be easy to fill my bag with some supplies each time and put them in the trunk of an abandonded car or somethin'. Once we had enought to last us a few weeks, we could just bug out one night," he said. Beth would rather they just left right now. She didn't want to wait for Daryl to stock up supplies. But she was willing to get on board with any plan that would lead to them getting out of this place. She popped her head up once he was done talking.

"You really mean it?," she asked. The excitement in her voice was obvious. And it was catching. Daryl found himself smiling back at her, his hurt leg forgotten.

"You bet ur ass I mean it," he told her. She kissed him all over his face and neck, little tickling kisses. Then she kissed him hard on the mouth. She parted his lips with her tounge, moaning softly as she got a taste of him. His hands moved down, gripping her firmly by the ass and shifting her so she was on top of him.

"How soon can we leave?," she asked. She sat up and pulled her shirt off over her head. She bent her knees so she was stradling him, her hot center pressed against his stomach.

"Dunno, maybe a week or two," Daryl said. At the moment, he was much more interested in sliding his hands up her waist and pinching at the small hard pink tips of her breasts than he was in doing math in his head. He played with them until she started to moan, then he moved one hand down and pulled at the waistband of her pants.

"Take them off," he told her. She stood up, eager to comply. She noticed he was making no move to take his own clothes off. He only shoved his pants down far enough to get his dick out.

"Take yours off," she said, nodding towards his pants. He gave her a little grunt and shoved them down towards his ankles. Beth shoved her pants down, kicking off her shoes first. She stepped over him, one foot on each side of his waist. "The shirt too," she told him, deciding that she was in a position to make demands. When he didn't move to do as she said, she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Fine, fine," he mumbled, pulling his shirt off over his head. Then he ran his fingers up her legs, tickling the backs of her knees so she would be forced to bend them and sit back down on top of him. She giggled, sitting down on top of him and leaning forward to kiss him playfully. The kiss deepened quickly, the heat between them taking over. The fear of getting caught was always there. Because of that their embraces were usually rushed. Today they had a little more time. A lot of people had gone out on the run. And Daryl knew the store was a least 45 minutes away. So that gave them over an hour together before Beth would need to leave and go wash up.

Beth followed his lead, letting Daryl take the time he wanted to kiss and fondle her. He sucked at her breasts, flicking his tounge over her nipples until the throbbing between her legs grew so intense that she had to fight the urge to slip her own hand between her legs to find some kind of release. She had to roll off him and press her thighs together.

He rolled in behind her, so they were lying like two spoons on edge. Using his hand, he slid under her top leg and pulled her thighs apart so the top leg was bent. Then he entered her, pushing in from behind. He moved so slow, holding her hips still with one arm around her waist to keep her from bucking back into him. The pressure was building inside her and she was ready to start begging him to move faster.

"Stay still," he whispered into her ear, his hot breath only serving to increase her urge to move. He took his hand from around her waist and put it between her legs. Rubbing his fingers against the center of her pleasure, he continued his slow movements in and out of her. It only took a few moments of pressure and she was coming undone in his arms, her insides flooding with warmth. He held still and let her come, his full length buried inside her. Her top leg went limp, sliding down to rest against the other leg.

Rolling them both so she was on her belly with him on top behind her, he laced his fingers with hers. He meant to keep moving slow, enjoying the only time they were likely to have alone for a while. But feeling the soft round curve of the underside of her ass against his hips was putting him over the edge. He slammed into her again and again, forgetting that he wasn't wearing a condom and forgetting about being careful. The only thing he could think about was her wet slit and the soft little whimpers of pleasure coming from her each time he pushed inside. He felt it then, the pleasure rolling over him in waves as he filled her with his seed. It was already far too late to pull out, so he stayed inside her, holding her close and rolling them back onto their sides.

Beth was usually in a rush to get up and get her clothes back on after they finished, but this time she lay still. Her warm body felt like heaven in his arms, and he leaned over her to turn the lantern off, surrounding them with darkness.

"Can't fall asleep in here," she warned him. Beth knew she ought to get up, but she was not able to find the will power to move. His strong arms were wrapped around her and his skin was touching hers. His manhood was slowly relaxing until it slid out of her, leaving her feeling both empty and satisfied at the same time.

"Don't want to sleep, just want to hold ya a while, never get to hold you," Daryl mumbled. Beth had a feeling the pain pill she had given him might finally be kicking in. The muscles in his body felt so much more relaxed than they normally did. And his words had slurred a little when he spoke.

"Just for a minute," Beth warned him, not sounding very convincing. She forced herself to keep her eyes open, but they kept drifting shut. It had been so long since she felt as relaxed and comfortable as she did at this moment. She listened to the even slow sound of Daryl's breathing and told herself she was going to get up and get dressed. First she was only going to close her eyes. Only for a minute.


	32. Chapter 32

Day 400

Beth put her hand over her mouth before she even rolled out of bed. Her first thought was to run down the stairs and throw up outside, but she knew as soon as her feet hit the cold cement of the floor that she was never going to make it that far. So she ran for the window instead, twisting the latch and shoving it up to open it. Leaning out the window, she emptied the contents of her stomach down the side of the building. Beth was thankful that no one happened to be standing around down there or they would have ended up covered in her vomit. And her secret was getting hard enough to hide without that happening. Everyday the little lump below her belly button got bigger. With clothes on it was still easy to hide. But when she was naked it was starting to get obvious.

Grabbing a glass of water, she used it to rinse the taste of vomit out of her mouth. Realizing too late the glass was full of vodka instead of the water she had been expecting, she spit it out the window. Vodka had never been her drink of choice, and lately even the smell of alcohol made her stomach turn. She spit it out, but it was too late. The taste of the alcohol made her start throwing up all over again. Beth took the glass and the rest of its contents and hurled them out the window. For a moment she thought about hurling herself out the window after it. They were at least two and a half stories up. A straight fall down to the concrete below. With any luck, the impact would kill her instantly.

After the battle yesterday, this was all supposed to be over. Neegan was supposed to be dead. Instead he had come back injured. Which of course had meant that he wanted Beth and only Beth to take care of him and his many varied needs. She had not been able to get a moment to talk to Daryl and find out what went wrong. But from the things she had heard people saying, they had beaten Rick's group in a gunfight.

When she heard that, the last small bit of hope Beth was holding onto went dark. It felt like someone wet their fingers and snuffed out the candle flame that was burning inside of her. Beth looked at the big man, snoring loudly in the bed she had just climbed out of. She would rather die than have to lie down with that pig again. Even the smell of him was starting to make her gag. She knew she needed to hold on and be strong, but it was getting harder and harder to believe that anything good was ever going to come from any of this.

Beth looked out the window again. Instead of the normal quiet of the early morning that she was used to, she saw a car pulling up near the front gate. The car stopped outside and someone got out of the passenger side. The person walked down the narrow walkway that was lined with roamers. As they got closer, Beth could see it was Carl. Feeling like her heart was in her throat, she grabbed at the window with her now sweaty palms, trying to shut it. Finally, she wiped her hands in her shirt and then slammed the window shut, not caring anymore if she was quiet or not.

"Neegan," she hollered loudly, shoving at the man on the side he had not been shot in, "Wake up!" He swiped at her, like she was a tiny annoying fly buzzing around him. She knew that was coming and leaned back to avoid contact with his large hand. "Get up," she yelled again. He sat up now, moaning because the wound in his shoulder still hurt.

"What the fuck?," he asked. This was his normal way of asking what was going on.

"Carl," Beth said, "he's coming down the walkway into the compound."

Daryl was already dressed and down in the courtyard when he saw the boy come in. He nodded his head slighty at him, but held his bow up, pointing it at Carl. More people were starting to fill in, coming down from inside the factory to see what was going on. Carl noticed with some satisfaction that the number of fighters they had was significantly decreased since the last time he had been here. During the gunfight the day before, he had positioned himself on a rooftop and shot at least three of them himself. Neegan came out of the building, his leather jacket draped around his shoulder since he couldn't put it on with his shoulder bandaged and one arm in a sling.

"My dad wants to meet with you," Carl told the big man. Carl had not brought his gun, but he grabbed for it anyway and came up with nothing but air. He felt naked without his gun.

"What the fuck for?," Neegan asked the boy. His chest was bare under the jacket. With his large potbelly hanging out above his pants, he looked much less imposing than Carl remembered. But Carl was not going to let that make him drop his guard. The man still had his wicked bat in hand. He was dangerous.

"To agree to the terms of our surrender," Carl said. He had practiced his little speech a few times in the mirror before Maggie drove him here. This seemed to make the big man happy. He strode over and clapped Carl on the back. Then he headed back inside to finish getting dressed. Daryl caught him near the door.

"Might be a trap," Daryl said. Neegan laughed him off at first, but then he thought about it. Daryl was right. These fuckers were sneaky. Attacking the compound and then talking Hilltop into fighting with them. "I got your back," Daryl said, "I will get Tara and Mike to come with us too." Neegan nodded.

"Get Carson too," Neegan ordered. Then he headed inside. Beth and Lauren fixed his sling so he could at least get a fucking shirt on. The jacket he was going to have to leave hanging around his shoulders for now. He was also not going to be able to hold his bat and a gun at the same time and he was feeling rather irritated about it. Lauren strapped a holster around his waist and Beth slid his gun into it.

"Made sure it was full," she said, "and here's an extra clip." She slid the clip into his back pocket. He made a big show of kissing her goodbye, like he always did. The other girls crowded in to get their goodbye kisses as well. Beth backed up. She elbowed Amber just a little in the ribs. Then she held the pocket of her robe open so Amber could see inside. Beth's pocket was heavy and full of bullets. It took Amber a moment to understand that Beth had loaded Neegan up with an empty gun. Then she turned away from Beth, looking at the big man with a smile on her face. She had been trying to avoid kissing him goodbye, but now she crossed the room and threw her arms around him.

"Good luck honey," Amber said, kissing him on the mouth like she really meant it. He gave her a squeeze. Having had his fill of attention from his women for now, Neegan picked up his bat and left the room, shutting the door behind him. Amber went back to her place at Beth's side.

"In case that doesn't work, maybe we should make our own plan?," Amber suggested. She spoke quietly so the other girls wouldn't hear her. Beth nodded, a new plan forming in her mind. She reached into her pocket, feeling the bullets and letting them slip through her fingers as they clinked together. Fuck jumping out that window, she thought, if I go down I am going down swinging. Beth leaned closer, talking almost into Amber's ear.

"If he comes back from this," she said, "I will slit his throat while he sleeps."

Carl was in the car with them. Carson drove. Neegan was in the front passenger seat and the rest of them were sandwiched into the back. Daryl remained silent during the drive, unhappy that Carson was with them. The man was in on their plan, and Daryl did not want to have to kill him. Carl also stayed quiet while they drove, mentally preparing himself for what was coming. As they rode in silence, Daryl felt Carl's hand brush over his. Carl did not look at Daryl, but he squeezed his hand tightly just for a second. He felt Daryl squeeze back before he let go.

The gates were slid open quickly when they arrived, like the people in Alexandria were waiting for them. An older woman was near the front gates to meet them. Daryl knew she was the actual leader of this place, though she depended on Rick to handle any problems from the outside. When Neegan got out of the car, she greeted him like they were old friends.

"We don't want any more violence here," Deanna said, "and I am more then willingly to do whatever it takes to provent any further problems." Neegan looked at the woman, one eyebrow raised.

"Who the fuck are you?," he asked. From her expression, he might as well have invited her for tea. His coarse language didn't even phase the woman.

"I am Deanna, the leader of this town," she explained, "Rick is just our sheriff." Neegan nodded, actually seeming like he might be interested in this information. This was someone that he could easily bully into doing whatever he wanted. "I will take you to meet with him, but then I would like to speak with you privately."

"Fuckin' fine with me lady," Neegan told her. As Deanna walked them all towards the infirmary, Daryl could tell the hamster wheel in the big man's head was turning. Daryl knew well enough by now how Neegan thought. Why not just get rid of Rick. Then they would only have this old woman to deal with and she would be easy to control. Daryl gripped his bow tightly as they walked.

Inside the infirmary, Rick was lying in a bed. Several pillows were propping him up and his left arm was bandaged. Since Daryl knew full well that Rick had not gotten so much as a scratch in the fight the day before, he thought the bandages were a nice touch. Rick reminded him of a possum. Under his blanket, Daryl guessed he had a loaded gun. Neegan walked into the room first. His sheer body mass made it feel uncomfortable to be inside the small room with him. He said nothing to Rick. Instead he dropped his bat, letting it hit the floor. Daryl felt like he was watching it happed in slow motion. The bat hit the floor, bouncing off and then landing near the toe Neegan's boots. Reaching into his holster, Neegan pulled out his gun and pointed it at Rick.

Daryl had no time to even lunge at the man. It happened that quick. Neegan pulled the trigger and Daryl expected to see Rick's face explode. Instead nothing happened. The gun just made an empty little clicking noise. He pulled the trigger a few more times, like he couldn't believe what was happening. Then Neegan held the gun, looking at it. The last time he checked it, it was fully loaded. Then he remembered. Beth had put it in his holster for him. She was trying to get him killed.

"That little bitch," he said. The words were only about half out of his mouth when Rick pulled his colt from under the blanket and shot him in the face. The bullet tore off his ear and most of his hair on that side of his head. The next bullet hit him square in the middle of the forehead. The big man took one more step and fell down with a flop that shook the entire room. Carson pointed his gun at Rick, but the others were ready for him. Tara shoved him, throwing his aim off so the gun fired off harmlessly into the wall above Rick's head. Then Daryl stepped between him and Rick, aiming his crossbow at Carson.

"What the fuck Dixon?," Carson said. He didn't understand what was happening. Now Tara and Mike had their guns pointed at him too. And he had no idea why.

"No one else has to die for him," Tara said, nodding towards Neegan. Carson kept his gun up, but he reached up to adjust his glasses with the other hand. He was starting to understand. They had all turned on Neegan. The man in the bed didn't even look hurt. He was faking. This was all part of a plan to lure Neegan here and kill him.

"You were all in on this together?," he asked. The disbelief in his voice was obvious. Carson's eyes were wide and his mouth hung open a little bit. Tara and Daryl both nodded. Finally Carson lowered his gun. "Thanks a fuckin' lot for telling me," he told them all, looking at each one of their faces, "You all are nothing but a bunch of assholes." Tara lowered her gun. She couldn't help it. The last part of his comment just hit her funny bone for some reason. She started to laugh. "It ain't fuckin' funny!," Carson announced. He had been shocked at first, but now he was feeling hurt because they chose not to trust him. He had just as much reason to hate Neegan as everyone else. Except maybe Daryl.

"Well," Mike said, poking at Neegan's limp body with the tip of his sneaker to made certain he was dead. "At least its over now." Daryl shook his head.

"It ain't over," he told his friend, "its just beginning."

Beth had never felt so nervous in her life. She had just about paced a dent in the floor until finally Amber told her to sit her ass down before she drove them all nuts. She sipped at a glass of water, sniffing it first even though she had filled it herself from the kitchen. Her heart was beating so hard, and she felt like she couldn't breathe. Lauren handed her a paper bag and told her to breath into it before she passed the fuck out.

Suddenly, Amber was on her feet, pressing her face against the window. Ginny dropped her cat on the bed and ran to scoot in next to her.

"I see a car," Amber said, "but I can't see who's in it."

"I can't look," Beth said, "just tell me who's back." She couldn't say too much. Amber knew she was waiting for Daryl to come back. But the other girls were still under the impression that she was worried about Neegan. Beth wondered how they were going to take it if Neegan didn't come back. Would they be relieved, scared, upset even? She wasn't sure if any of them actually had genuine feelings for the man. Beth heard the sound of car doors being slammed outside. Then quiet. And then the pounding noises of someone running up the stairs. She knew it was him before the door flung open.

Beth was on her feet before she knew it. Rushing towards the open door she flung so hard into his arms she almost knocked them both back into the hallway. And then she was kissing him, all over his face, on the good side, on the burnt side and on the mouth. Daryl's arm went around her, holding her so tight she could barely breathe. Amber was next to them laughing.

"Is it okay if I go see Mark now?," she asked.

"Go for it," Daryl told her like he couldn't care less about anything besided the woman in his arms.

"You guys are sort of blocking the doorway," Amber told him. He moved into the room, walking Beth backwards a few steps so Amber could get through. Then he saw them. The other three girls. They were huddled on one bed together, looking at him like he was the boogeyman. He held onto Beth with one arm, but he moved her slightly away so he could see them better.

"Where's Neegan?," Lauren asked once she saw Daryl looking at her.

"He's dead," Daryl told her. He figured there was no point in trying to sugar coat it. Jasmine started to sob as soon as she heard what he said. Lauren put her arm around the girl, pulling her closer. At first Daryl thought they were upset Neegan was dead, but then Lauren spoke up again to express her real concern.

"What's going to happen to us now?"


	33. Chapter 33

Epilogue

Day 1,104

Beth leaned over the sink to wash the blood off her hands, the hard swell of her belly pressing into the metal edge. Harlan threw and arm around her shoulders, reaching in to get a gentle rub on her stomach. She had already threatened everyone who tried to touch in the tender itchy skin on her stomach with severe violence. But instead of stopping, it had become a game to sneak in and get a rub on her, then dart away before she could hit them with any available object that she could lay her hands on. Harlan saw the dirty look she was giving him and gave her one more soft rub before pulling his hand back.

"You did a good job today," he told her.

"There was so much blood," Beth said, pulling her now clean hands from under the water and drying them on a towel, "It scared me a little."

"Scalp wounds tend to bleed a lot," he reminded her, "but you did a great job with the sutures. Especially since your patient was not being very cooperative." He said the last word with a laugh. That kid had been flopping around like a fish out of water. It had taken three grown adults to hold him down.

Beth looked down at her apron. The front was smeared with blood and snot, so she pulled it off and tossed it in the laundry basket. Then she took the jar of candy down from the high shelf where it was kept and pulled out a lollipop. Heading back into the exam room, she saw Maggie in a chair, holding her most recent patient in her lap. He turned his head, saw Beth, and then buried it back into his mother's chest. He looked at Beth like she was the most horrible person on earth. Maggie gave her an apologetic smile and tried not to laugh.

"Hershel," Beth said, moving to kneel on the floor in front of the small boy, "Since you were so brave today, I have a little treat for you." The promise of a treat seemed to interest the boy, though he still regarded his Aunt with a suspicious glance and held tight to his mother. She pulled the wrapper off the lolly and held it out for him to see. When he reached for it, she pulled it back out of his grasp.

"Can Auntie Beth have a hug first?," she asked him. He considered her proposal with his usual seriousness. Then he let go of his mother and climbed into Beth's arms, hugging her around the neck with his tiny arms. She hugged him back, holding him tightly in her arms and kissing his head. When he let go she handed him the treat. "No more climbing," she reminded the boy. He nodded, though she doubted he was going to stop. That kid reminded her of a damn mountain goat. Every time Maggie turned her back he was on top of something. Glen had fallen asleep while he was watching him once and Hershel had climbed out the widow and up on the roof.

Maggie pulled her son back into her lap and held him close, stroking his hair. She took another look at the long cut on the side of his head, grateful that it had not been worse.

"We have some baby tylenol in the lockup," Beth told her, "I will get it for you in a minute."

"Don't bother," Harlan told her, "I am going there now." He opened the door to go out and almost ran smack into Daryl. They gave each other a little nod. Daryl had to duck low under the doorway, since he had his daughter up on his shoulders, clinging to handfulls of his hair.

"How's Hershel?," he asked. From the volume of the screams that had been echoing out of the infirmary, he had figured the boy was fine. No one that was seriously injured would have the energy to scream that loud. Beth got up, pulling her daughter down into her arms and giving her a kiss. She smoothed her unruly curls back away from her face. Then she set the girl down and hugged Daryl as close as her swollen belly would allow. He gave her a lingering kiss on the lips that lasted until Maggie cleared her throat, making a loud coughing noise.

"Hershel is going to be fine," she said. "How did the trading go?." She felt terrible about not being present to handle a trade that she had set up, but there was no way she was leaving her son was he was in the infirmary bleeding from the head. Daryl nodded.

"Good. We got those two solar panels and Rick got a flock of pullet chickens and two roosters, plus a milking goat," Daryl informed her. Maggie had already arranged everything with Deanna. He and Rick didn't have much to do except exchange the stuff and shoot the shit. "Him and Lauren are going to stay the night at our place and drive back in the morning, they brought you some cookies that Carol made for you." Daryl added. He saw that information lit Beth's face up with a big smile. She had been missing Lauren since the woman moved to Alexandria to be with Rick. Plus she loved Carol's baking.

Daryl reminded himself again that they should really send her something back to thank her. Or keep it for when she got here. She was coming to stay with them for a few weeks to help out once Beth had her baby. When Beth had her daughter, Carol had stayed with them for a month and they had both been sad to see her go. Beth had it in mind to try and talk her into staying on permanently this time. Or at least for the winter.

"Did Carl come too?," Beth asked.

"Yeah, just don't start trying to talk him into moving here again or Rick will have a damn fit," Daryl warned her. Beth and Maggie both laughed.

"She was only pointing out that living at Hilltop has its advantages," Maggie teased, "like fresh cheese." Beth started laughing harder. It wasn't a secret that Carl loved cheese. He traded for it everytime he came and usually tried to beg extra from Beth and Maggie. Tempting him with lots of free cheese if he moved here had just been low down dirty. And funny. Until Rick got wind of the offer and yelled at all of them. Then it had been even funnier, but not until after he was gone.

Beth's daughter pulled at her pantleg and Beth hoisted the small girl up into her arms. She pointed to the treat in her cousin's mouth.

"Candy," she demanded. Before Beth could tell him not to, Daryl headed for the back room and came back with another lollipop, handing to the girl. She popped it into her mouth without hesitation, a look of sheer bliss on her pretty face. Then she leaned forward to give him a sticky kiss on the side of his face. Since his daughter had grown up seeing him with the scars on his face, she never thought anything of them. When he was with her, he often forgot they were there.

"Who do you love best?," Daryl asked her.

"Candy!," she replied. That really made Beth laugh, and then everyone was laughing at her since she had to hand her daughter over to Daryl and run for the bathroom to keep from pissing her damn pants. Beth washed her hands once she was finshed relieving herself and looked at her reflection in the mirror. She had not really looked at herself in so long. Daryl didn't care much for his reflection, so they didn't have many mirrors in their house. And Beth was too busy with her daughter and her work at the infirmary to spend much time primping. She barely recognized herself. There was that long scar that ran down the side of her face. But it was much lighter and fainter than the last time she saw it. Her face looked fuller, with round healthy pink cheeks. And of course her boobs were huge, or at least huge for her since when she was pregnant or nursing was the only time she had any boobs to speak of. She looked like she felt. Happy.

Voices were carrying in from the other room and Beth headed out to make sure it was not someone that needed medical assistance. She smiled when she saw it was Tara and Carson. Tara looked so much better. She had lost Mike about six months ago. He was killed out on a run, bitten in the back protecting Tara when they got caught in a herd. Tara had been the one to put him down and for a while Beth thought she might do the same for herself. Seeing someone as strong as Tara broken had been terrible. But Carson had been close with Mike as well. Almost as close as he was with his brother. He had taken the loss almost as hard as Tara. And in their grief, they found each other. Mike had always given in to Tara's every whim. Beth liked seeing her with a man that challenged her.

"Are we going to take care of those roamers out by the west fence?," Carson asked Daryl.

"Or do you need to stay here and get Beth pregnant again?," Tara added with a wicked grin. Everyone took this as the joke it was. Except Carson, who looked rather confused.

"Can you get pregnant when you are already pregnant?," he asked. Harlan had appeared in the doorway with the baby tylenol in time to hear this exchange and he really laughed it up.

"How is it possible that I know more about vagina than you do?," Harlan asked his brother. He walked over and handed the small bottle to Maggie, who took it gratefully.

"Probably 'cause you have one," Carson informed him. Then Carson went ahead and laughed at himself. Tara lauhged a little, but Beth could tell she was eager to get a move on so they could get done clearing that fence before dinner time. Daryl handed Beth their daughter back and kissed Beth again before he set off with Tara and Carson to go take care of business. His arm went around her waist, dipping down so his thumb snuck inside the waistband of her pants. Parting her lips, just the tip of his tounge slipped into her mouth. He always kissed her like it might be the last time. Tommorow they could die. But not today.

 **** A huge thanks to everyone that read and reviewed. I know there are a ton of Beth/Daryl stories out there so I took it as a personal challenge to write something unlike the stuff I have read before. I hope you all enjoyed it, and as always a big shout out to TWD for coming up with such great characters in the first place. ****


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